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This afternoon, I met two guys from Ethiopia who have lived in Donetsk for more than 30 years. They invited me to share a cappuccino in the Don Cafe, a cool spot not far from the Orthodox church on Artyoma Avenue (the main artery of this city). Here, we have many foreigners that came to Donetsk from developing countries in the Soviet time to get a free education, an education that their countries weren’t able to provide them. Some of them remained here since they found a job and their “half an orange” or a better environment than the countries where they came from. The Ethiopians told me that they went today to the central market to buy cottage cheese and kefir from a lady who imports those products from the Ukraine. She crosses the border very often with her trade. The lady told them that today at the checkpoint the Ukrainian soldiers were unusually polite and kind with her. They told her that the war would end before the end of April. They told her they hate Poroshenko and they respect Putin. After checking her documents, they allowed her to cross the border with a smile. This story comes from the particular experience of a lady who sells milk, kefir, and cheese in the Donetsk central market. She isn’t a “political analyst” or an “expert”. However, I’ve heard this rumour lately many times from local people here… that the war will end in a couple of months or so. I think that the common people are wiser and know better what is going on than any “expert”, politician, bureaucrat, or journo-mercenary working for the mainstream media.
12 March 2017
Miguel Puertas
Facebook
Voices from Russia 
The Ethiopians, the Kefir Vendor, and the End of the War in the Eastern Ukraine
Tags: civil unrest, DNR, Donetsk People's Republic, everyday life, Novorossiya, Ordinary, Ordinary life, political commentary, politics, Russia, Russian, Ukraine, Ukrainian Civil War, war and conflict
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This afternoon, I met two guys from Ethiopia who have lived in Donetsk for more than 30 years. They invited me to share a cappuccino in the Don Cafe, a cool spot not far from the Orthodox church on Artyoma Avenue (the main artery of this city). Here, we have many foreigners that came to Donetsk from developing countries in the Soviet time to get a free education, an education that their countries weren’t able to provide them. Some of them remained here since they found a job and their “half an orange” or a better environment than the countries where they came from. The Ethiopians told me that they went today to the central market to buy cottage cheese and kefir from a lady who imports those products from the Ukraine. She crosses the border very often with her trade. The lady told them that today at the checkpoint the Ukrainian soldiers were unusually polite and kind with her. They told her that the war would end before the end of April. They told her they hate Poroshenko and they respect Putin. After checking her documents, they allowed her to cross the border with a smile. This story comes from the particular experience of a lady who sells milk, kefir, and cheese in the Donetsk central market. She isn’t a “political analyst” or an “expert”. However, I’ve heard this rumour lately many times from local people here… that the war will end in a couple of months or so. I think that the common people are wiser and know better what is going on than any “expert”, politician, bureaucrat, or journo-mercenary working for the mainstream media.
12 March 2017
Miguel Puertas
Facebook