Around 50 people gathered on the Council House steps in Old Market Square to show their solidarity with Ukraine tonight. Russian forces invaded Ukraine exactly one month ago on February 24, which prompted president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to call for protests to take place around the world.
One of those was held in Nottingham city centre, organised by the Nottingham Ukraine Solidarity Campaign. The protest was announced on Thursday (March 24) morning before it took place at 6pm.
Protestors could be heard chanting that they wanted Russia president Vladimir Putin out, branding him a 'war criminal'. Organisers were encouraged by the turnout given the late notice. And most of those that attended had family members or friends that are currently in Ukraine.
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Zoreana Climenco, 39, who lives in Carlton with her family and was born in Ternopli, Ukraine, helped to organise the protest. She said: "My mum recently went back to Ukraine and my brother is out there too. We hugged each other and cried for such a long time. You never know if that could be the last time.
"It's important to show solidarity. I think everyone hoped it would only last a few days, yet here we are a month on. The world should be free from anything like this, there should be an end to the war. It's really great to see the amount of people who have turned out."
Kevin Lucyszyn, 67, who lives in Toton, said: "I've got family and friends out in Ukraine, and the person I talk to the most out there is my cousin who was trying to build a career. She went west to the Lviv area in western Ukraine to get her grandmother safe.
"My father was pushed out of his home in Ukraine during the Second World War. He never got to go back and spent the rest of his life living in England. We've just got to do all we can. There's a big danger of fatigue syndrome, like we saw with Covid, but it's important to keep the message out there."
David Dowbenko, 59, who lives in the city, said: "My cousin lives in western Ukraine and thankfully they're safe for now. Many others have family and relatives out there who are feeling threatened at the moment though."
Irina Holliday, 35, who was born in Russia and now lives in Gedling, was seen again to be holding a sign apologising for her nationality. She said: "I have family in Novosibirsk, and I fell out with them after they told me I was the one that was brainwashed. I just hope for a ceasefire at some point soon. I want to see people stop killing each other."
Liam Conway, one of the organisers of the protest, said: "We want this protest to be a huge statement. It's right for us to come out, we had to answer that call from the Ukrainian president. I expected around 20 given the late notice, but it's great to see that nearer 50."
