Invasion of Ukraine – The fear of a never-before-lived war

– The fear of a war never lived

Eastern Europe’s abrupt swing into conflict crystallizes fears that were thought to belong to the past.

Posted today at 9:23 p.m.

In Geneva, as elsewhere, there is strong emotion in the face of the suffering of Ukrainian civilians.

KEYSTONE

Invasions, tanks, bombs. Many Genevans follow minute by minute the development of what has been so feared in recent days: the war in Ukraine. For those who have family or loved ones there, the fear is visceral. But the anguish, rational or not, is also diffuse, even in privileged Geneva.

In the street, with family or around the coffee machine, the worst fears are shared. Some think of making reserves in their cellar to anticipate a possible new nuclear cloud. Others wonder about the distance separating them from the first atomic shelter or predict the next Russian invasion, after that of Ukraine. Discussions that were hard to imagine not long ago.