Three years ago, Ukraine’s top diplomat in Australia was with his family in Kyiv when Russian paratroopers started landing just 20 minutes from his home.
It’s an experience Vasyl Myroshnychenko wants no Australian to share.
“I will never forget that moment at five o’clock in the morning when my wife woke me up,” he told AAP.
“I heard the explosions and my 18-year-old daughter and my five-year-old son were with me.
“My wife said, ‘we need to go’.”
Russia launched a full-scale invasion on its neighbour on February 24, 2022.
In an interview with US media outlet NBC News last week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said more than 46,000 Ukrainian troops had been killed defending their homeland, while the wounded numbered about 380,000.
Add to the scale of suffering 20,000 children forcibly deported to Russia, plus tens of thousands of Ukrainians missing in action or in captivity.
The true number of the thousands of civilians killed in occupied Ukrainian territory also remains unknown.
Mr Myroshnychenko pointed to the rules-based international system being under threat.
“Rewarding Russia for aggression sends a very dangerous signal to other authoritarian leaders, especially here in the region, in the Pacific, and for Australia, for New Zealand, for all the Pacific Islands,” he said.
“If it doesn’t matter anymore, it becomes a very dangerous world.”
The Ukrainian ambassador described Vladimir Putin as a “gangster” who needed to be held accountable for war crimes, including the downing of the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014 which claimed the lives of 38 Australians.
Rallies in support of Ukraine were held in the nation’s capital cities at the weekend as well as a commemorative vigil in Melbourne.
A memorial service at the Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Canberra will also be take place on Monday and be attended by Australian officials, diplomats and the Ukrainian community.
Australia has committed more than $1.5 billion in aid to Ukraine.
In a joint statement, Anthony Albanese with his defence and foreign ministers said the nation will continue to stand with Ukraine as it “bravely” resists Russia’s “immoral war”.
“Australia mourns the loss of life of Ukraine’s citizens and defenders, and the generational toll of Russia’s brutality,” it reads.
“Once again, Australia calls on Russia to immediately end its war and adhere fully to its obligations under international law, including in relation to the protection of civilians and treatment of prisoners of war.”
Peter Dutton and opposition defence spokesman Andrew Hastie said the coalition stood with Ukraine and for an end that fully respected its sovereignty.
“A peace that does not reward the murderous despot Putin, as any reward would embolden other autocrats to follow in his tyrannical footsteps,” they said.
“As Australians look on from afar and see the horrors and heartache of war that Ukrainians continue to endure every day, we also see, every day, a country of heroes.”
Co-chair of the Australian Federation of Ukrainian Organisations Kateryna Argyrou said the war had taken an “immense toll”.
“But Ukrainians are strong and will continue to defy Russian aggression,” she said.