As Russian forces conxjmtzywtinue to retreat from the Ukrainian capital region, there’s once again a peaceful feeling in the centre of Kyiv, otherwise known as Independence Square.
"The city, which has been under assault for the last six weeks, is beginning to come out of that a little bit because the Russian forces have all been now moved away from the city," said CTV National News’ Chief International Correspondent Paul Workman, standing in the middle of Independence Square.
It was at Independence Square where the seeds of Russian aggression against Ukraine were first planted more than eight years ago, during the Euromaidan protests.
In November 2013, after then-Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych scrapped a deal with the European Union in favour of closer economic ties to Russia, a wave of protests swept across Ukraine. Ukrainian demonstrators gathered at Independence Square and other city squares across the country demanding the impeachment of Yanukovych and closer ties with the EU.
These protests came to a head in February 2014, when hundreds of thousands of protesters at Independence Square were met with deadly clashes with riot police in what’s been dubbed the "Revolution of Dignity." Eventually, Ukraine’s parliament impeached Yanukovych and the ousted president fled to Russia, decrying his removal as a "coup."
But in the weeks following the Revolution of Dignity, Russian troops marched into Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula and seized the regional parliament. Separatist militants backed by Russia also took control of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine.
"Will (the Russian forces) regroup and try to take Kyiv again at some point? Many people fear that. I’ve spoken to a lot of people who say the risk is not over," said Workman.
"The war goes on in the south and the east. But for the moment now, Kyiv feels as if people can relax.”
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Barricades partially block the road in front of the Maidan Square, nearly empty at dusk in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, March 14, 2022. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
