Stand with Ukraine Rally

On 21st November 2013, large protests erupted on Maidan Nezalezhnosti (Майдан Незалежності) or Independence Square in Kyiv sparked by the then-Yanukovych Administration's sudden decision not to sign the European Union-Ukraine Association Agreement, who were under pressure from the Kremlin. What followed was a wave of protests and civil unrest across the country which led to the 2014 Revolution of Dignity with more than a hundred deaths. After the fleeing of former President Viktor Yanukovych and key Ministers to Russia, Ukraine was hit with the Annexation of Crimea (a key strategic peninsula on the Black Sea) and the War in the Donbas, the latter having continued since 6th April 2014 with significant loss of life as well as millions displaced.

In late 2021 and early 2022, Russia along with its ally Belarus began a military build-up around Ukraine's borders. This was subsequently followed by the Kremlin's official recognition of the two self-proclaimed Separatist States of Donetsk and Luhansk in East Ukraine on 21st February 2022.

However, on 24th February 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his administration launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This is seen as the largest military attack in Europe since World War II and as of March 2022, there have been more than two thousand deaths of military personnel and civilians along with more than two million who have been displaced from their homes. The Russian invasion has been condemned internationally with many countries imposing sanctions which have resulted in economic consequences for Russia and other countries. Various countries around the world have provided Ukraine with military and humanitarian aid. Moreover, protests have erupted all around the world condemning Russia's actions with those in Russia met with mass arrests and a brutal crackdown on censorship.