Montrealers rally outside Russian consulate on 4th anniversary of Ukraine invasion
Posted February 24, 2026 1:43 pm.
Last Updated February 24, 2026 5:33 pm.
Some two dozen Montrealers rallied outside the Russian consulate downtown on Tuesday afternoon, marking four years since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.
As the fighting now enters its fifth year, the rally brought together member’s of the city’s Ukrainian community and supporters. Many waved the country’s blue and yellow flag and chanted fiercely in a show of solidarity, honouring victims of the war and backing Ukraine’s ongoing struggle. Their demonstrations have been occurring every day at noon since March 2022.
“People gathered here, the majority, do hope for Ukraine’s victory despite it all, despite all odds,” said Evhenia Viatchaninova, a Ukranian-Montrealer partaking in frequent demonstrations. “David should overcome goliath and we’re seeing that here.”
According to the United Nations Human Rights Monitoring Mission, 2025 marked the deadliest year in Ukraine since 2022, with roughly 2,500 civilians killed and 12,000 injured – a 31 per cent increase in civilian casualties over 2024.
Meanwhile, since 2022, there have been nearly two million military casualties and tens of thousands of civilian deaths.
“It’s important for us to announce openly that Russia is a terrorist state,” said Viatchaninova. “The Russian people, including their elected leader, Vladimir Putin, are criminals of war. We want to make it clear that the Russian diplomatic presence in Canada should be nil,” she added.
According to a report this month from the UN office in Ukraine, 5.9 million Ukrainian civilians have left their home country. At least 300,000 of those relocated to Canada, including 20,000 in Quebec in the Greater Montreal area.
“We want peace to come back to Ukraine,” said Serge Sasseville, former Montreal city counsellor. “It makes no sense that in 2026, a country can be at war with another country in Europe and destroy and kill people.”
As international peace talks continue, major political and territorial disputes remain unresolved. Given the ongoing attacks on Ukraine, the European Union has said Russia does not appear ready for peace.
“The end to this terrible, barbaric, genocidal war needs to end at some point,” said Viatchaninova. “It will have to end at the negotiating table, not just on the front lines.”
Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2014, taking control of Crimea and claiming other parts of the country, before launching its full-scale invasion in 2022.
The U.N. General Assembly has called for an immediate, full and unconditional ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine.
At a meeting on Tuesday, it also reiterated its call for the complete exchange of prisoners of war, the release of all unlawfully detained persons, and the return of all internees and of civilians forcibly transferred or deported, including children.
–With files from The Associated Press
