War and Warmth
Donations save lives and limbs
Frozen Assets, ©2025 William L. Brown. Russian assets will remain frozen in Belgian banks. Ukraine and its allies tried to access and use them to fund Ukraine’s defense and reconstruction, but Belgium balked at the threat of Russian lawsuits. The US also wants control of the funds, part of it’s highly-transactional “peace plan.” Instead of using the frozen assets, European allies will loan €90 billion to Ukraine, it was announced today.
The war is in drawings, the warmth is in donating, as many do this time of year. Here is a short list of groups aiding Ukraine. If you donate, you get a warm “thank you” from me too.
• The Common Man for Ukraine is a New Hampshire group. They have a well-run, well-attended series of fund-raising events and concerts. They sponsor mental-health retreats to Poland for Ukrainian youth. They also provide non-lethal aid of various kinds.
Peace Negotiations, ©2025 William L. Brown. The Trump administration makes a pretense of being an even-handed mediator in peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, but in reality it pressures Ukraine to capitulate to Russian demands.
• 2025 Fearless Fourth Quarter Campaign is run by Kathy Stickel, a US veteran. I met her at a local fund-raising event. She’s the sort of person who knows everybody: people with things to donate, and people who need specific things, particularly medical equipment. The group brings to Ukraine all kinds of supplies from diapers to ambulances - whatever they can get their hands on. They use their connections in Ukraine to get it to those who need it. Kathy even helped get a group of children out of Russian captivity. Funds all go to aid, not administration costs.
Dogwhistle, ©2025 William L. Brown. Using neo-nazi “dogwhistle” phrases, Trump’s National Security Statement reversed previous US policies. Trump’s administration is not at all concerned with the Russian threat to democratic Europe. However, it was deeply concerned with “threats” to European ethnic purity, culture and religion.
• Ekaterina is a personal friend, a Ukrainian language teacher who lives in Dnipro. She is a tireless activist. She helps run the local Help Point where displaced persons from the front line areas can find food, clothing and other help. They also buy old cars and trucks, fix them and send them to the front for aid and military tasks. They don’t last long, so there’s a constant need. They are not a US registered charity, but it is guaranteed all funds go entirely to Ukraine, no overhead expenses. There is a Patreon donation link on her YouTube page, or go directly here. Alternately, you can contact her directly via YouTube, or through her Substack page, 5_minutes_with, where she posts about life in Dnipro, war-news and views.
Disarm and Loot, ©2025 William L. Brown. The 28 point plan Trump presented to Ukraine in late November was based on Russia’s capitulation demands. The plan’s additional points awarded lucrative control of Ukrainian resources and reconstruction projects to the US. Under pressure to agree to this plan, Ukrainian and European leaders met to craft a counter-proposal. That counter-proposal is currently under discussion with the Trump administration. It is highly unlikely Russia will agree to anything but it’s maximal demands, unfortunately.
• NAFO/Help99 is an organization Larissa Babij says she has worked with for several years as a translator. They buy and recondition vehicles for military, medical or aid use, then send them in convoys across Europe to Ukraine.
They also raise money for drones.
• Sternenko Community Foundation was also recommended to me by an American-Ukrainian activist. They fund many military projects such as drones and anti-drone defenses. “Invest in victory.”
US Boots, ©2025 William L. Brown. Trump’s repeated foreign policy theme is that Europe must contribute more for its own defense. It should even be prepared to defend itself without any US backing, in fact. Given past dependence on the US European allies are struggling to fill America’s boots.
• If you want to support Ukrainian journalism, the Kyiv Independent is beholden to no-one. They have some of the best coverage of the war, and are not afraid to report corruption or incompetence.