Foreign military aid is so important in Ukraine’s defense against Russia that a Ukrainian business pays tribute to new products: versions of plush toy weapons smashing the backs of Russian forces.
Kopytsia, an online store founded in 1998 in Ukraine’s Chernihiv region, has launched a line of what it calls “patriotic soft toys” to honor the country’s resistance to Russia and the help it has received.
Among the toys on offer are embracing versions of the Bayraktar TB3, Turkish drones that have played a key role in Ukraine’s defense, and Javelins, anti-armor weapons that Ukraine has used to destroy Russian tanks on the battlefield.
There is also a miniature, 20-inch version of the Mriya cargo plane, the heaviest plane ever built before it was destroyed in the battle for Antonov Airport near Kyiv in the early days of the Russian invasion in February.
Maria Kopitsia, who runs the family business with her father Anatoliy, said the goal was “to maintain the patriotic mood of our nation and to support Ukraine’s armed forces.”
Ms. Kopitsia, who remained in Ukraine throughout the war, said the family launched a morale-boosting product line during the first two weeks of the war, but heavy fighting in northern Ukraine, including in the Chernihiv region, made delivery to the capital impossible. and other large cities.
Prices range between $ 8 and $ 12 for each toy. Ms. Kopitsia said toy sales would go to pay their workers.
On Sunday, a photo published by Ukrainian journalist Olga Tokaryuk showing Ms. Kopitsia’s toys sold in a store in western Ukraine went viral, and Ms. Kopitsia said interest in them had skyrocketed – despite some online criticism. that they risk militarizing Ukrainian children.
Ms. Kopitsia said she was grateful for the West’s help for Ukraine.
“If we can defend our country with their help and I can live in an independent Ukraine, then I am all for it,” she said.
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