Bay Area leaders condemn Russian invasion of Ukraine

The attack on Ukraine by Russian armed forces brought statements of condemnation Thursday from Bay Area elected leaders as well as the consul general of Ukraine in San Francisco.

The bombings and other hostile actions started early Thursday morning local time in Ukraine and have brought worldwide criticism of Russia, whose president Vladimir Putin called it a “special military operation.”

U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday announced sweeping financial sanctions and export controls regarding Russia in the wake of the attack and said many other countries around the world are mirroring American actions.

Locally, Dmytro Kushneruk, consul general of Ukraine in San Francisco, spoke with U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, D-California, following the attack. According to the consul general’s office, Kushneruk “called on the senator to make every possible effort to implement a system of effective countermeasures to countervail Russian aggression.”

Padilla put out his own statement, saying America will:

… stand with the brave people of Ukraine and continue to coordinate with our allies in imposing severe costs on Putin and his cronies.”

Other Bay Area members of Congress issued similar calls for unity against Russia, with Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Dublin, calling Putin “a ruthless dictator whose actions are a threat to democracies everywhere” and Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Palo Alto, saying that “attacks on free and sovereign countries will be met with severe consequences.”