LONDON (Parliament Politics Magazine) – As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, demonstrations and protests in favour of Ukraine have taken place around the UK.
Thousands of people have attended rallies in Edinburgh, London and Manchester including outside the Russian embassy and Downing Street.
The embassy was thrown eggs at , and slogans inscribed on the outside walls in chalk.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have also stated that they “stand” with Ukraine’s people as they “bravely fight.”
“Today we stand with the president and all of Ukraine’s people as they bravely fight for that future,” Prince William and Catherine stated in a tweet after meeting President Volodymyr Zelensky and his wife in 2020.
In a statement, Prince Harry and Meghan said they were standing with the people of Ukraine “against this infringement of international and humanitarian law” and urged other world leaders to do the same.
Boris Johnson had previously praised plans to provide additional military and humanitarian aid to Ukraine, which is still under Russian bombardment.
Later, he tweeted that he spoke with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte about defensive aid for Ukraine and the “urgent need to exclude Russia” from the Swift system of international banking payments.
Throughout the day, big crowds gathered outside the Russian embassy in London for one of the demonstrations the country saw. “Russia, stop the war,” “Putin, stop the war,” and “leave Ukraine alone” were chanted.
Mick Antoniw, a Welsh government minister who was in Kyiv just before the invasion, was also present at the protest and urged the government to impose “sanctions that isolate Russia economically, socially, politically, and culturally,” adding that they must be “so severe that the people around Putin want to remove Putin.”
Students at St Mary’s Ukrainian School in Holland Park, London, protested the Russian invasion with placards.
On Saturdays, the supplementary school is held on the grounds of the Ukrainian Cultural Centre.
On Saturday, those supporting Ukraine gathered around the UK, notably in Piccadilly Gardens of Manchester, where about 1,000 people assembled in the city centre.
People gathered around the Scottish Parliament building in Edinburgh, Scotland calling on the politicians to put in more efforts in support of Ukraine.
In a show of solidarity with Ukraine, a number of buildings around the country, including the London Eye, 10 Downing Street, and Lincoln Cathedral, have been brightly lit in yellow and blue this week.
As the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, remains under siege, the United Kingdom is among more than 25 countries that have pledged to continue supplying armaments.
On the third day of the invasion, Russian attacks on the capital were met with intense opposition, and fighting is also taking place in or near many other cities.
The Royal Welsh battlegroup’s British Challenger 2 tanks and armoured vehicles have been arriving in Estonia as part of Nato’s efforts to fortify its eastern flank, according to the Ministry of Defence.
Ukraine will be subjected to “days, weeks, and months more” of intense conflict, according to minister James Heappey of the armed forces.
He told the BBC that it was going to be brutal and the tv was going to show so,e horrendous things.Â
Mr Heappey said he couldn’t get into specifics about how the additional UK help would be delivered to Ukraine, but that it may be “on its way right now.”
Image via BBC
