An estimated 3,000 Ukrainian families have arrived in South Florida in the 16 months since Russia launched its brutal, unprovoked invasion of their country.
It’s safe to say they’re all hoping the mutiny of the mercenary Wagner Group militia against Russia exposed enough weaknesses to potentially hasten the end of the war.
“We think it’s the beginning of the end,” said Rafael Nagli, a member of a group called Florida for Ukraine.
The group’s members are optimistic that the rebellion, especially Yevgeny Prigozhin’s declaration that Vladimir Putin lied about the reasons for invading Ukraine, will unleash information that can’t be swept under the carpet.
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“Prigozhin publicly announcing that the reasons for the war aren’t true and there’s no reason to continue this war, it’s kinda hopefully will be a wakeup call for Russians,” said Darya Zalyvadna, operations director for Florida for Ukraine. “And plus, it’s a boost in Ukrainian morale to see that this beast of Russia is finally starting to crumble, we see that Putin is weak, we see Russian elites start uniting against this war so that’s a good beginning, a start of the end.”
“Other thing which is extremely important,” Nagli added, “There was nobody, absolutely nobody, no people who came out on the streets supporting Putin, his support is all fake."
As experts on cable news proclaim the opportunities now available to Ukraine’s army, there’s a more sobering assessment from people on the ground there.
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“But nothing deeply changed, unfortunately,” said Dasha Sokhatskaya Monday in a Zoom interview.
Sokhatskaya is a teacher in central Ukraine. She and her husband have an 11-year-old son who dad rarely sees because he’s fighting on the front lines.
“We were lucky just to have some texts from him to know that he’s OK, he is alive,” Sokhatskaya said.
He texted her Monday and said he can’t see any impact yet from the Wagner rebellion.
“The situation is the same, I mean if we talk about my husband and his situation, and his colleagues, everything is the same,” she said.
Sokhatskaya is disappointed by that update but encouraged that because of the mutiny, the world seems to be paying more attention to Ukraine.
“Now after this interview, I really feel that somebody cares, that people are interested in our fate and maybe they can help because it’s quite difficult to struggle with such a cruel enemy alone,” she said.
Sokhatskaya is disappointed that the rebellion turned around before it got to Moscow.
There’s also a fear amongst Ukrainians that since Putin knows he looks weak and exposed, he will do something brutally drastic to prove he’s still strong.
