A former Dallas mayor and his friend from Ukraine toured Dallas Tuesday seeking support for Ukraine with a stop at Dallas City Hall to meet with current Mayor Eric Johnson.
Former Mayor Tom Leppert met Ukrainian journalist Ruslan Kukharshek on a mission trip to Ukraine years before the war.
Kukharchuk led a group of journalists and organized large gatherings in his home country before the Russian attack. He remained in Kyiv since the invasion maintaining his media and ministry work, but some activities are no longer possible there.
“It's a huge risk to be outside, organize anything outside. And of course, a lot of volunteers, a lot of team members, they are out of Ukraine. They are refugees now,” Kukharshuk said. “It's a very terrible time in fact in Ukraine. But Ukrainian people are very firm to protect their land and to overcome.”
Get top local stories in DFW delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC DFW's News Headlines newsletter.
The journalist told Mayor Johnson about devastation from Russian drones in the latest attacks targeting homes and power plants.
“Almost 10 hours every day in Kyiv there is no light,” he said.
Kukharshuk has sent his family to safety in Poland amid the new attacks on Ukraine's capital.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
Johnson said what he has seen of Russian behavior should be considered terrorism.
“What the Russians are doing to the civilians is heartbreaking,” Johnson said. “We stand with you as a city in terms of solidarity with the people.”
Immediately after the war began, Johnson and the Dallas City Council unanimously passed a resolution supporting Ukraine and condemning the Russian attack. The vote suspended ties with a Russian sister city and urged Dallas businesses to suspend connections with Russia.
The United States has committed more than $20.3 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since 2014, about $17.6 billion of that since the Feb. 24 Russian invasion.
“Of course, it is the decision of the American people and the American government, but yes, we need more. Unfortunately, we need more because we speak about people’s lives,” Kukharshuk said.
Tuesday’s visit comes as some U.S. leaders say America has done enough for Ukraine and the spending should not continue.
“One of the challenges we have is sustaining the interest. The United States' support has been very strong to this point, but it needs to maintain that strength. We can’t let Putin, we can’t let the Russians win just because it becomes convenient for us to forget,” Leppert said.
The former Dallas mayor has ties to Ukraine dating back to his days as a White House aide in the early 1980s.
He said this Dallas tour with Kukharshuk is part of an effort to build a network to help support Ukraine now and after this war.
“We’re trying to build the network and really brainstorm what can be done in our communities, through health care, through foundations, through other leaders in our community to aid the people in Ukraine, not only today but looking down the road,” Leppert said.
Leppert also arranged meetings for Kukharshuk with Dallas hospitals, charity foundations and other political leaders in his effort to build that network for the future.
