He said countries like China want to know how far they can push before getting a response from the U.S. “We know that China would like to reincorporate Taiwan.” “There are other states that would like to challenge the territorial integrity of neighbors,” said Grove. He also said the United States is “part of this process, whether or not we like it,” because after the Cold War, Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons in exchange for a promise that their territorial integrity would be protected.

President Joe Biden has been focusing his attention on China, but now with a war happening in Europe on the boundary of NATO allies, the U.S.’s priorities might shift, said Grove. Additionally, he encouraged those who might feel Ukraine is far away to take the time to engage, as everyone's participation is important for a flourishing democracy.Īccording to Grove, the United States, which includes people in Hawaii, will have to discuss where the priorities of the country are. He said that people in Hawaii who aren’t from Ukraine also care about what’s happening, whether they are an anti-war activist or a member of the U.S. While for many in Hawaii, Ukraine feels like it’s on the other side of the world - it is a 12-hour time difference - Jairus Grove, a political science professor at the University of Hawaii at Manoa said it is important to acknowledge that Hawaii does have a Ukrainian community. 24, they all said they have felt a range of emotions from disbelief, shock, extreme sadness, stress, fear, guilt about being away from their home country, and pride for the way Ukrainians and the country's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have stood up to the Russian invasion. HONOLULU - Four Ukrainians who live in Hawaii spoke to Spectrum News Hawaii about what it has been like watching Russia launch a military attack in their home country. This is the third part in a series of interviews with Ukrainians who call Hawaii home. Read about nuclear weapons in the first part, Putin’s use of fake news in the second part and supporting Ukraine from Hawaii in the fourth part.

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