SALT LAKE CITY — A group of Ukrainians who currently live in Utah took to the Capitol Thursday to show support for their home country.
Many of these people are in Utah for schooling and expressed anger, heartbreak and worry about the situation unfolding at home.
The majority of people that spoke with FOX 13 News said they have family and friends in Kyiv, which is currently under attack.
“I think this is wake-up call… for the whole world to watch,” Niles Herrod said.
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The group gathered at the capital were adorned in blue in yellow with flags. They spoke about their families, their country, and said they believe it's time to put a stop to Putin.
"The only way to get out of this situation is for Putin to stop,” one person said. “It’s been since 2014 actually so it's about time it stops,” another person added.
“It’s not just Ukraine and Russia in this… its the whole world,” said Kateryna Pavlenko. “When they are bombing your own city, when they are all over Ukraine when they are from the East from the South from the North you see it is serious and it will affect the whole world.”
Pavlenko is in Utah from Kyiv going to school like others who were demonstrating Thursday.
"I might not have a hometown, I might not have a family, I might not have a home country to come back to,” Pavlenko explained.
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Despite the cold, the small but loud group stood for hours to denounce Russian and Kremlin aggression.
“We want our land and we want to be safe we don’t want to have war,” one person said.
Ultimately, they are asking for support from Utah as their home away from home.
“If other countries don’t come to stop Russia with us it will spread," the group said. "It will spread it will go everywhere in Europe. Russia won’t stop in Ukraine. It's just a matter of days and weeks until they go further. You have to stop it now unless its going to get worse and worse a lot harder to stop.”
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Many of them say they will be up there every day until Putin stops his aggression and movement into their home country.
They are planning to be back at the capital on Friday at 1 p.m. to stand for their home country.
