Kostiantyn Rieutskyi, the co-founder of the Vostok SOS Charitable Foundation, is one of those who did prepare seriously for the war. The 47-year-old human rights activist had lived in Luhansk until 2014. When the city was occupied by Russia-backed militants, he was forced to leave for Kyiv. Even then, Kostiantyn was sure that Russia was planning another round of armed aggression, and that one needed to prepare for resistance.
Two years ago, Rieutskyi enlisted in the territorial defense. He had never held a gun before. Kostiantyn trained every Saturday. Since the beginning of the war, he has been defending Kyiv.
“We are resisting a military adversary that far outnumbers us in combatant forces and materiel. That is why we need the efforts of the entire society to protect our country,” is how Kostiantyn explains his choice. He is convinced that in order to create an ideal country, it is necessary to defend it at any cost, so he started with himself.
“We are protecting our home. We have a great purpose. It is to build a European democratic country. We have everything we need for this. I reckon this goal is worth all the sacrifices we have to make, and which we have already been forced to make,” said Rieutskyi.
He is not afraid to lose everything, even his life, for the sake of this goal. He’s also not afraid to start from scratch because he’s already done it.
“In 2014, approximately 2 million people from the eastern part of Ukraine, including myself, lost everything. First of all, we lost our regular life which we’ve been building for many years. It covers both tangible and intangible things. We were obliged to start fresh. But we (I mean the Vostok SOS team) did not feel as traumatized as many of our compatriots from the east because we were immediately involved in the process of helping the victims. It took all our time, and there was no time to feel sorry for ourselves. This time, many of us are once again forced to abandon our homes and the whole life we began to build eight years ago.”
Since 2014, the Vostok SOS Foundation has been helping victims of the war in eastern Ukraine to find lodgings, providing them with humanitarian and psychological assistance. Currently, the project team is helping all Ukrainians in need.
Kostiantyn is most excited by the fact that he is not alone in the struggle for the future of Ukraine. “Despite the losses, despite the wounded and the killed, people continue to help each other and the army,” said the human rights activist. “It is too early to talk about victory, but we definitely did not lose and will not lose. The casualties can be great because our enemy is very strong. Nevertheless, we have to go on and we have to keep the sense of unity, the sense of our country which is now literally shimmering in the air. It is essential for us as a people, for the formation and development of the nation. I believe we will fight to the end, overcome and build an ideal country that some other European countries will envy.”
