OPINION: Ukraine Must Speak Out on Gaza: A Call to Live Up to Its Own History and Values

In June 2021, a newly installed Ukrainian government quietly removed its name from a UN petition with more than 40 other countries criticizing China’s abuses in the western Xinjiang region. Beijing had threatened to withhold a shipment of at least 500,000 Chinese-made COVID-19 vaccines, and Kyiv, desperate to protect its population, capitulated. That episode should not set a precedent for Ukraine’s foreign policy when it comes to standing up for human rights.

Today, Gaza faces what is increasingly recognized as a man-made famine. Forced starvation has already claimed the lives of at least 175 people, including 93 children. More than 60,000 people have been killed as a result of Israeli military actions.

Meanwhile, thousands of aid trucks wait at the borders while food and medical supplies languish inside the strip, undelivered. Authorities in Gaza say more than 22,000 humanitarian aid trucks are waiting outside the Strip, as an average of 84 trucks have entered the besieged enclave since Israel somewhat eased restrictions on July 27, Al Jazeera reported Monday. Aid organizations say at least 600 aid trucks are needed per day to meet basic needs.

This is not an unavoidable tragedy – it’s preventable, and it demands a moral response from every nation that claims to defend human dignity.

Ukraine, of all countries, cannot afford to remain silent. It has lived through its own Holodomor, the Stalin-orchestrated famine of 1932-33 that killed millions of Ukrainians. That history should give Kyiv not only the moral authority but also the moral obligation to speak forcefully against deliberate starvation as a weapon of war.

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Yet when the UK and 31 international partners recently issued a statement that condemned Israel’s drip-feed approach to aid in Gaza, Ukraine’s name was missing (several of Ukraine’s neighbors were signatories, including the three Baltic nations and Poland).

A mealy-mouthed statement issued by Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs way back in March went no further than express “great concern” for ceasefire violations and didn’t even include the word “Israel.”

The Zelensky government may believe that silence preserves goodwill with Israel, perhaps even the hope of future military assistance to shield Ukraine from Russian missiles and drones. But Israel’s support to date has been tepid at best, limited to statements from a few MPs and minimal tangible aid.

Meanwhile, Ukrainians with Palestinian spouses have been trapped and repeatedly evacuated from Gaza. Ukraine already has humanitarian ties with Israel, including rehabilitation programs for its wounded soldiers. None of these relationships should preclude Kyiv from taking a principled stand on Gaza.

Ukraine should lead—not lag—in humanitarian and diplomatic action:

• Speak out: Join the international chorus condemning deliberate starvation.
• Send aid: As one of the world’s great breadbaskets, Ukraine is uniquely positioned to provide grain and relief supplies (many ships leaving world port Odesa routinely call at Egyptian ports).
• Offer sanctuary: Open its doors to Gazans in need of urgent medical treatment.
• Exert diplomatic pressure: Use every channel to push Israel and the Trump administration to allow life-saving aid to flow.

What is unfolding in Gaza is unlike anything we’ve witnessed in our generation. The Western alliance appears powerless to sway Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has signaled plans to intensify IDF actions in the Strip. Silence in the face of this escalating humanitarian nightmare is complicity.

Ukraine has fought fiercely for its own freedom, sovereignty, and right to exist without fear of annihilation. Those same principles demand that Kyiv speak now for the voiceless in Gaza. To remain silent is to betray not just Gaza – but Ukraine’s own history.

Mr. Bociurkiw is a former UNICEF spokesperson for the West Bank and Gaza, an Atlantic Council senior fellow and creator of the daily World Briefing newsletter on Substack.

The views expressed in this opinion article are the author’s and not necessarily those of Kyiv Post.