Naomi was born on Oct. 12, 2007, at the Ohmatdyt Children’s Hospital in Kyiv, Ukraine. This week, she watched in horror as a Russian missile struck the building, along with dozens of other targets across the country. When the dust had settled, 44 civilians were dead. It was one of the worst attacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure since the war began almost two and a half years ago.
Naomi, who asked that her last name not be shared for fear of retaliation against her family, spent the majority of her life in Kyiv before moving to Toronto in 2021.
“My life was disrupted by war from a very young age, first by the invasion of Ukraine and annexation of Crimea in 2014. I’ve carried the fear of Russian violence throughout my entire life,” she said.
The videos started pouring in, and at first, she did not flinch. She has become desensitized over the years to Russian war crimes. But this time, lives were ending where hers began. It produced a palpable sense of violation. Ohmatdyt is Ukraine’s largest children’s hospital, treating about 20,000 patients every year, according to the Ukrainian Ministry of Health.
“It was as though they destroyed the beginning of my life. In a way, I believe that is what Russia is trying to do: destroy people’s innate sense of self and also just terrorize us,” she said.
“My mother’s reaction was very strong, it was so raw. I couldn’t even imagine what it would be like, in one of your most vulnerable moments — giving birth — to go through a terrorist attack.”
If Russia’s goal was to break Ukrainians’ will, it has not worked. Since the attack, the hospital has raised more than 300 million Ukrainian hryvnia, or about $10 million Canadian dollars, for repairs.
On Tuesday, hundreds of Ukrainians showed up outside the Russian consulate in Toronto, denouncing the latest round of strikes and demanding more action from the Canadian government. Two days later, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada was committing an additional $500 million in military assistance to Ukraine as the NATO leaders’ summit was winding down in Washington.
But the organizers at the rally wanted something else: for the Canadian government to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism.
Free Ukraine Square
The Russian consulate in Toronto sits on the fifth floor of a nondescript office building near the Yonge and St. Clair intersection. Shortly after Russia launched its full scale invasion in February 2022, the city’s then-mayor John Tory declared the courtyard across the street “Free Ukraine Square.” It’s here that Ukrainian-Canadians, Ukrainian refugees and others have staged their demonstrations against Russia ever since.
Kirill Kozyar was at the rally on Tuesday. He was born in the Ukrainian city of Dnipro but has lived in Toronto for more than 15 years.
“People are getting really used to severe atrocities. When the war started, people were shocked, but this has all become normal,” he said.
“This was really beyond the pale: firing a precise missile into a children’s hospital. It’s a whole new level of cruelty. I have a small kid now, so I take it more personally.”
Yanina Surelo moved to Canada in 2016. The last time she was in Ukraine was New Year’s Eve of 2022. Two months later, the war started, and she hasn’t been back since. Her parents still live in Zaporizhzhia, a city in southeastern Ukraine that is under partial Russian control.
Her Canadian friends have been very receptive and compassionate, but it’s impossible for them to fully understand, she says.
“Before the war started, it was even difficult for me to understand what people in other [war-torn] countries were going through. If you don’t live there, you’re just not going to get it,” she said.
That is partly why she is heading back to Ukraine in August for a month.
“I’ve been feeling guilty for not being there. I’ve been preparing myself for a really long time and I just need to go. It’s very important for me to just be there and experience these hard times with my parents and friends,” Surelo said.
State sponsor of terror
Ukrainians have adopted a few patriotic slogans that are easy to learn. The most recognizable is “Slava Ukraini” (Glory to Ukraine), with the accompanying retort, “Heroyam Slava” (Glory to The Heroes”). The crowd dutifully repeated these words, finishing off with the profane “Putin — Khuilo” (Putin is a d**ckhead).
One of the organizers then made a demand.
“Today we are calling on the Canadian government to convene a special session of Parliament to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism,” the woman said. Cheers ensued.
There are currently only two countries that the Canadian government designates as state sponsors of terrorism: Iran and Syria. Such countries are subject to export controls, especially of technologies that could have civilian and military uses, foreign aid restrictions, economic sanctions and more.
Citizens of countries designated as state sponsors of terror may also be subject to increased scrutiny in visa applications.
The Canadian government also maintains a long list of designated terrorist entities that do not include nation-states (with the possible exception of the Taliban, which now has full control of Afghanistan). Just a few weeks ago, the government added the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran’s radical military branch, to the list.
“Designating Russia [as a state sponsor of terror] is a good idea, but it wouldn’t make too much of a difference in practical terms,” said Jack Cunningham, a lecturer in global affairs at the University of Toronto.
“The main argument against doing so is that you close off avenues of diplomacy. But I suspect those avenues are pretty limited already,” he said.
In 2022, Latvia became the only NATO ally to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terror.
“Russia has long deserved this status with its actions in Ukraine and beyond. Ukraine encourages other states and organizations to follow suit,” tweeted Ukraine’s foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba after the Latvian parliament agreed on the designation.
When asked whether the Canadian government would consider a terror designation for Russia, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the following:
“Canada remains unwavering in its commitment to employ all appropriate means to hold Russia to account for its actions, including war crimes committed in or against Ukraine.”
It is unlikely that Canada would follow suit before other NATO allies, says Chris Kilford, a retired Canadian Armed Forces commander and director of the Canadian International Council, a defence policy think tank.
“From the Canadian government’s perspective, it is important we look past the Putin regime in Moscow and to our future ties with Russia when he is long gone,” Kilford said.
The matter could not be more simple for Naomi and her family, who just watched what was clearly a terrorist attack.
“I think it is very realistic and necessary that Russia be designated as a state sponsor of terror,” she said. “I think there will be some real momentum for that given the harsh reality of Monday’s attacks.”
