Ukrainian Western student feels helpless as conflict rages

It’s been a long and stressful week for Sasha Moskalenko, a third year Western student at King’s College in London, Ont.

“Everyday I call my parents and wait to see if they will answer and to find out if they are fine and alright,” says Moskalenko. “And everyday is the same I just wake up and we just hope that they are alive for now.”

Moskalenko is the only one in his family in Canada. His parents, three siblings, grandmother and relatives all live near the capital of Kyiv.

“My grandmother is in the most unsafe zone right now,” says Moskalenko. “She hears the gunfire and explosions.”

Moskalenko says he feels helpless because all he can send is moral support and prayers from thousands of kilometres away.

He says doesn’t know when he can return to Ukraine or if it will still be his home.

“I have no clue when I will see them, if I will see them alive,” says Moskalenko. “That’s all I can think of, I’m scared all the time.”