Ukraine war: A Ukrainian soldier examines a destroyed Russian military vehicle in Kharkiv. (AFP)
Russia launched a full-scale offensive against its tiny neighbour Ukraine last week. Its forces filled Ukrainian skies with missiles and naval ships bombed the bases in coastal areas. Ukraine's air bases were also destroyed and tanks, accompanied by foot soldiers, entered its cities.
But as the Russians marched ahead, the resistance grew stronger. Tales of Ukrainian soldiers making brave last stands emerged and were shared widely on social media. One of these stories mentioned how a solider blew himself up on a bridge to stop Russian tanks from advancing. Another one mentioned how Ukrainian border guards defending an island in Black Sea told Russian warship to go f*** yourself. They were hailed as heroes.
Ukraine's official Twitter handle has now shared a thread, highlighting the tough fight put up by the country against overwhelming odds. The first tweet shows the map of the two countries to show the difference between their sizes. It has been captioned “Realize the scale of Ukrainian heroism”.
A subsequent tweet in the thread said, “Do not be afraid to stand up to evil, no matter how powerful it seems at the dawn the flag will still be there.”
Several videos have emerged on social media in which Ukrainians are seen confronting Russian soldiers and former beauty queens picking up guns to protect their country. Then there is the story of a brave civilian trying to block an entire Russian convoy and another who removed a landmine with his bare hands.
The Russian forces are now concentrating their attack on Kharkiv, Ukraine's second biggest city. By launching the war against Ukraine, Moscow has defied global pressure that saw a war crimes probe opened against Moscow, sanctions smash its economy and FIFA ban it from the World Cup.
The negotiators from the two countries met on Monday for the first time since the beginning of the war. The talks failed to secure a breakthrough, the only point both the sides agreed to is to hold another round of talks soon.
Russian President Vladimir Putin had earlier outlined Moscow's demands for ending the invasion, including recognition of Russian sovereignty over Crimea and Ukraine's demilitarisation.
Instead, the world has responded with an intensifying diplomatic, economic, cultural and sporting backlash, with Moscow coming under fire at the UN General Assembly and the International Criminal Court (ICC) opening a war crimes investigation.