Hundreds flood downtown Hamilton with blue and yellow in show of support for Ukraine

It took all the blue and yellow broadcloth from a Hamilton-area store to create the 12-metre-long Ukrainian flag Orysia Foster sewed together with the help of two of her friends.

She stood behind it on Sunday, as hundreds gathered in Hamilton to do the same — standing behind Ukraine, protesting the Russian invasion and calling for peace.

"Ukraine needs help. It needs support," she said.

"If Russia stopped the war this would all end, but if Ukraine stopped fighting, there would be no Ukraine."

Foster, who has family in Ukraine, was part of a flood of blue and yellow that filled the Hamilton city hall forecourt, one of many demonstrations across the country this weekend.

"There are so many people here who are not Ukrainian and it's just heartwarming to see all the support," she said.

Larysa Zariczniak, president of the Ukrainian Youth Association of Hamilton, was encouraged by the size of the crowd, too.

She was one of the speakers who addressed them, describing the pain of seeing what's happening to Kyiv, the capital city, where she previously lived and the fear that comes from having friends who are fighting.

"It breaks my heart what's happening to my city," said Zariczniak. "That country is part of my soul."

Zariczniak recorded a video during the demonstration and said she had already shared it with a commander she knows who's on the front lines in Ukraine.

"Showing them that we in Canada, who are thousands of kilometres away, are supporting them in any way that we can, it honestly makes it so much easier for them to fight."

The office of Ukraine's president announced Sunday that a delegation would be meeting with Russian officials at a location along the Belarusian border.

That news came after Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered his country's nuclear forces be put on high alert in response to what he called "aggressive statements" by leading NATO powers.

Konstantyn Sheweli, president of the Hamilton branch of the Ukrainian National Federation, urged Canadians to help ensure future generations of Ukrainians will be free.