Let us go ahead and get the obvious out of the way, Ukraine is embroiled in a defensive war with Russia and it’s allies. However, even during war, things change as needed and adaptation is essential for survival. And just as any flora or fauna evolves and adapts to an ever changing and hostile environment, Ukraine is evolving and adapting to new challenges everyday. Both on the field of battle and off. Ukraine has been given the tasks of not just stopping a near-peer adversary, but of pushing them out of it’s territory, as well as changing it’s entire culture and mindset to adapt to becoming the newest member of Europe and the wider world as a reformed nation. Now, given that anytime a nation has decided, in the past, to rapidly industrialize, convert governments or economies, or even just update aspects of itself, these challenges have always been difficult and time consuming. And that is without a dragon breathing down your neck. Ukraine is doing all of this while at war. So it is not difficult to imagine why Ukraine’s transition to a more Western-centric leaning is taking so long.
On February 24th, 2022, Ukraine was invaded by Russia, to the surprise of nearly the whole world. And this invasion had been planned for the better part of a decade with the seizure of Crimea and parts of the Donbas region in Eastern Ukraine. With the initial start of the invasion in 2022, Ukraine was in the midst of reforms that would cover nearly the entire range of government offices, businesses and industries, social structures, cultural dynamics, and so many others. Upon the invasions start, all of these changes that Ukraine was experiencing suddenly became exponentially more difficult. Now they didn’t have to just pass laws and govern a society in the midst of change, they had to now conduct wartime operations, while under Marshal Law, and continue to progress with the changes already outlined. To say this task has become near-impossible would be accurate. But, if I have learned anything from my time here in Ukraine and working with Ukrainians it is this: In Ukraine, achieving the impossible is normal.
For over two years, Ukraine has kept an enemy invasion at bay when being at a 5 to 1 or even greater disadvantage. They have been able to reach parity in the air and have slowed Russian advances to a crawl and even pushed back in multiple directions. Remember, Ukraine began this war with roughly 275,000 active personnel where as Russia began with 1.4 million. The 2nd largest military, by man power invaded the 22nd largest military and has been fought to a stand still. To say that Ukrainians do the impossible daily is not just hyperbole. So don’t be surprised when you see that the country as a whole is slowly but surely retooling it’s entire structure and population during a time of war. Over the past 2 years that I have been here, more and more government and military officials are being removed for corruption, spying, or any other misdeeds that have hindered Ukraine’s military and government but have also affected its civilian sectors.
A major point about the shift here in Ukraine is that, contrary to what many want to believe, Ukraine has only partially mobilized its economy for war. Most of the economy does work towards supporting the military. However only a small portion of this is direct interaction. The rest are tangentially supporting the defense of Ukraine by keeping the economy afloat by encouraging and even growing spending away from the front lines. With Ukrainians still able to support the economy during this time has proven that Ukraine is able to not only defend itself on the battle field but also show the world that it is capable of being successful and not collapsing, economically or socially, during these hardships.
While the economy has remained stable and the military is slowing and even stopping Russia, the Culture of Ukraine has exploded with more and more Ukrainians embracing their past that Russia has tried to excise from the Ukrainian People. With the invasion of Russia, which was declared to be a Special Military Operation to liberate Ukrainians from Fascists, the Russians began to obliterate Ukrainian history and culture in the captured areas. In response to this attack on it’s Heritage, Ukrainians have begun to rediscover and embrace their past culture of a hard and proud people with a sense of community that you rarely see in the modern West. With spontaneous musical performances to Ukrainian Folk Tales being told in Plays and Theater, to Artworks and literature, Ukraine’s culture has begun to shift away from the old Soviet and Tsarists influences that have suppressed Ukrainian culture for centuries. Ukrainians have had to reach as far back as the 16 and 17 hundreds to times when they were a fully independent nation. And despite these handicaps of their history being erased by Russian despots and dictators, Ukraine's culture has resurfaced in such an explosive form, that a National Identity has been formed for the first time in possibly centuries.
The Government of Ukraine itself has seen tremendous, and at times, painful changes to how it operates. Over the past 2 years since the beginning of the invasion, the Government has consolidated, re-organized, and out-right eliminated sectors of Government that have become a burden on it’s operations. The most significant steps have come in the form of removing and prosecuting individuals for corruption, mismanagement of government funds, theft, and a myriad of other crimes that became normal under Soviet and Post-Soviet Administrations. The Government of Ukraine has identified that if it is to join the rest of Europe and the West as a legitamit player, they must excise all of the corrupting influences of Russia. And at a time of war with Russia, the incentive to purge these influences has begun to accelerate. With more and more younger and more morally robust Ukrainians entering higher levels of government, we are seeing changes that would have taken decades to occur be achieved in months or years.
With a shift in government, economy, and culture, Ukraine has fostered and environment of industrialization and innovation during a time of war that has not been seen since the Second World War. The old adage of ‘Necessity is the Mother of Invention’ has never been more true and pushed to the forefront of the World Stage than it has here in Ukraine. With massive leaps in technology and innovation, Ukraine has been able to hold it’s own against a materially superior foe. FPV Drones, Kamikaze Drones, Remote Surveillance, Target Tracking, Electronic Counter Measures, and more are just the obvious innovations of Ukrainian Industry. The unseen workhorses of innovation have come in the form of utilizing 3D printing for things as simple as Speed Loaders for assault rifle magazines, body armor ergonomics, vehicle upgrades, and a myriad of other innovations directly related to the military. Now, it is widely held idea that during a time of war technology rapidly innovates to meet the needs of the soldiers, sailors, and airmen on the front lines. And as history has shown, these innovations spread through society and become a part of it’s fabric. And even as the war continues in Eastern Ukraine, the rate of innovation in the civilian sector of the economy has continued as it did before the invasion. Businesses are opening daily, new companies are being founded to meet particular sector needs, and Patents, Trademarks, and Copyrights are being registered at about 90% of Pre-War levels.
Due to the maintained stability of innovation and economics, industrialization and foreign investment have either remained steady or increased depending on the sector involved. The Ukrainian Government has identified key sectors for investment and is actively pursuing partnerships with European firms. Reinmetal being a prime example of this partnership plan. With Foreign Aid coming from the International Community, and investments in industrial and private sectors, Ukraine has been able to foster an environment that is protected, to certain extents, and will help grow it’s economy. Now, much of the foreign investment at this time is being focused on a few particular sectors such as Energy Production and Infrastructure. However, as time has passed and Ukraine has stalled it’s near-peer adversary to the North, more and more we are seeing foreign and local partnerships and investment into non-critical sectors of the economy. All of this during a time when the focus of the majority of Ukrainian Society is to the East. There are those in the country who wish to see Ukraine grow beyond the grasp of it’s despised neighbor and enter a brighter future Ukrainians may not have ever hoped to see.
With everything that has been said so far, I will admit there is a long way to go. You don’t just evolve every aspect of a Nation during a time of war, this isn’t the neighborhood community center. This is a nation of 42 million strong, proud, and stubborn people who refuse to no longer be oppressed and used as a cash cow for other countries. Ukraine has taken the first essential steps to purge itself of it’s old influences and has embraced it’s past in order to guide it’s future. All of this while fighting for it’s very existence against a foe that does not hesitate to purge any ideas or individuals that espouse Ukraine as an independent nation. Some would view this as impossible for any Nation or People during a time of peace, let alone during a time of war. But remember; In Ukraine, achieving the impossible is normal.
