Ukrainians, residents in Goa gather to voice solidarity

Panaji: A group of Ukraine nationals gathered in the Goan capital on Friday and held a peaceful protest in solidarity with their people and mother country, who face lethal Russian aggression, The Indian Express reported.

The gatherers of 20, including both residents of Goa and tourists from Ukraine, held placards with slogans' Stand with Ukraine' and 'No war in Ukraine'.

Yevhenia Marenych, one of the demonstrators and owner of an entertainment company in the Indian state, said they are asking the Indian government to help people stuck in Goa and cannot go back. The Indian government is requested to support them with visas and grant refugee status since they have no place to go and don't have a home anymore, she said.

She said that her family members back in Ukraine's Kharkiv is hiding and trying to protect themselves from bombs.

Mariia Skutova, from Ukraine's capital, Kyiv, said that some people had invaded her country while her people were suffering. Ukrainians want peace, and it is only what they are asking for. There should be decisive actions against Russia than mere sanctions, she said.

Milena Mezhuieva, also from the capital, said that nobody is currently safe in Ukraine and there is no peace inside the country. She narrated Russian tanks moving past civilian cars in Kyiv.

Meanwhile, Russia had vetoed a U.S.-backed U.N. Security Council resolution on Friday, deploring its invasion of Ukraine, in a sign of Russian President Vladimir Putin's growing isolation. Eleven of the council's 15 members voted for the motion, co-written by the United States and Albania. China, India and the UAE abstained. The resolution was always doomed to fail because of Moscow's veto power as a permanent council member.