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Ukraine's day of unity: what was announced
Summary
A look back at the announcement made on 14 February 2022, as Western intelligence pointed to a possible Russian attack and Ukraine reported pressure at sea.
What did a country do when its allies warned that an attack could be days away? On 14 February 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy gave one answer: he declared 16 February a "day of unity".
Ukrainians were asked to display the national flag from their buildings and to sing the national anthem in unison. The choice of date was not arbitrary. Western intelligence had cited 16 February as the most likely time of a Russian attack on the country.
Warnings in the preceding days
The announcement came after several days of mounting alarm. On 10 February 2022, U.S. President Joe Biden called on any Americans still in Ukraine to leave immediately, citing increased threats of Russian military action. The U.S. State Department issued a level 4 travel warning, its highest level.
The same day, Kyiv described pressure of a different kind. Ukraine said Russian Navy drills in the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov had made navigation "virtually impossible", and called the exercises part of a "hybrid war" against the country. Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said the Sea of Azov was completely blocked, essentially blockading Ukrainian ports.
A symbolic response
Against that backdrop, the call for flags and the anthem was a public gesture rather than a military measure. It asked citizens to take part in a shared display on the very day foreign intelligence services had singled out as a risk.
Taken together, the reports from 10 and 14 February 2022 show a Ukrainian leadership that was acknowledging the warnings openly and answering them with an appeal to national solidarity.
