According to Pastor Juri Kulakevich, who is responsible for international relations in the Ukrainian Pentecostal Church, what is happening in Ukraine is not merely a prolonged war, but deliberate terror directed at the civilian population.
– When people are deprived of electricity, heating and water in the middle of the coldest winter, they are placed in conditions that can lead to death. Our enemy is trying to make our cities uninhabitable, including Kyiv. In Ukrainian, we call it kholodomor, the starving of a nation through cold, Juri Kulakevich says.
He reminds us that this week marks four full years of war. People are suffering from various psychological symptoms such as depression and anxiety disorders. Without electricity, many households are unable to prepare warm meals. Schools and kindergartens have been forced to close, and remote learning cannot continue without power.
When lifts do not operate, elderly residents in high-rise buildings become trapped in their homes and cannot go out to buy food. Mothers of small children have to carry prams up and down multiple flights of stairs. Hospitals are forced to cancel surgeries, and people fall ill because of the cold.
– In an emergency, you cannot call an ambulance, because people cannot charge their phones. Public transport does not function properly. The cold and the lack of electricity affect the entire society. Even animals have died from the cold in homes and zoos. The list is endless, Juri says.
This is a man-made humanitarian catastrophe. Stopping it requires prayer, raising our voices, and concrete action.
Juri Kulakevich, Pentecostal Church of Ukraine
“The Church in Ukraine needs your support now more than ever”
In Juri Kulakevich’s view, the greatest danger is that the world grows weary of Ukraine’s suffering and falls silent.
– Ukrainians cannot forget this war, because they live in the midst of it every single day.
Juri calls on churches and the international community to stand with Ukraine, especially on the anniversary of the war on Tuesday, 24 February 2026, through donations and prayer.
– This is a man-made humanitarian catastrophe. Stopping it requires prayer, raising our voices, and concrete action. The Church in Ukraine needs your support now more than ever, Juri appeals to Finns.
Over the past two years, many Ukrainian organisations and churches have experienced a significant decline in international funding. Yet the need for assistance in Ukraine continues to grow.
Together with the relief organisations of the Nordic Pentecostal movements, we appeal to the people of Finland:
- Pray for Ukraine regularly.
- Continue to give financial support to relief efforts in Ukraine.
Hebrews 13:3 reminds us: “Remember those in prison as if you were together with them in chains, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.”
Article: Ninarose Koponen Photo: PMU
