Did the 'No capitulation!' protests reshape Ukraine's debate?
A look back at the rallies held in dozens of Ukrainian cities and abroad, set beside a week of government and aviation news.
What did Ukraine's public square say on 6 October 2019? Rallies under the slogan No capitulation! took place in dozens of Ukrainian cities and abroad. Participants protested against the Steinmeier formula and against the pullback of Ukrainian troops from the line of contact in Donbas.
The protests came at the end of a week in which the government was also setting out its own agenda. On 4 October 2019, Prime Minister Oleksii Honcharuk presented a five-year plan for what was described as a government of technocrats.
The same week brought an aviation emergency. On 4 October 2019, an Antonov An-12 cargo plane operated by Ukraine Air Alliance ran out of fuel and crashed on approach to Lviv International Airport. Five of the seven people on board were killed, and the airport closed.
The consequences reached beyond Ukraine. On 5 October 2019, the European Aviation Safety Agency revoked its authorisation of Ukraine Air Alliance, effectively banning the airline from all airspace in the European Union. The agency's move followed the crash.
Taken together, these reports show a country in which long-term planning, a safety failure with international consequences and a public argument over the terms of peace in Donbas were all in view within a few days. The rallies on 6 October 2019 were the most visible expression of that argument: demonstrations in many cities, and beyond the country's borders, aimed at one proposed settlement formula and one proposed military step.
