Meet a Ukrainian coffee shop owner ready to answer the call if Russia invades
Ukraine and Russia are on the brink of war, but you wouldn't know it by observing the streets of Ukraine's capital city.
Shops are open. Restaurants are open. People are out and about. And there is no overwhelming sense of anxiety - even as Russian troops edge closer to the border while insisting they're not plotting an invasion.
Tucked away on Nyzhnil Val Street is Roman Nabozhnyak's coffee shop, Veterano Brownie, named after the fact that the 31-year-old himself is a veteran who fought for the Ukrainian Armed Forces. He is currently a reservist, prepared to fight on the frontlines if he gets the call.
I ask him if he's ready for a possible Russian invasion.
"They have already invaded Ukraine in 2014," referring to the annexation of Crimea.
"For me personally, and for all my peers who are war veterans, it's not something new."
- Watch: Omar Sachedina speaks with Roman Nabozhniak, who served with the Ukrainian military and is a current reservist
- Read more: A timeline of major events leading up to the current Russia-Ukraine crisis
He started his coffee shop in 2019 - before the pandemic. Although it's open, the soldier - who was part of a very different battle as a contestant on Ukraine's version of "The Voice" - has shifted attention to online deliveries to stay afloat.
And getting ready to fight.
"If I'm called, I will go to my military base," he says, adding that the staff have already been trained to carry on without him. "So business can operate without me being here."
It's a constant state of readiness Ihor Romanenko knows all too well. Ukraine's former deputy defence minister, and a former member of Ukraine's top military brass, he retired in 2010, but spent 40 years in the military, roughly half that time under the Soviets before Ukraine gained independence.
Now, he teaches military strategy.
Ask him how likely it is Vladimir Putin will invade, and he shows me a map of Ukraine, with markers showing the position of Russian troops.
"Very high," he says, "We're almost completely encircled - except for the west."
"In 2014, many, including, unforunately, some Ukrainians though that Putin will not invade, but he did. He annexed Crimea."
At the same time, Romanenko says Ukraine's allies are speaking out more loudly this time, and its own military is more muscled and better equipped and more passionate.
"It is more ready to resist to the last drop of blood."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Police in Texas waited 48 minutes in school before pursuing shooter
Students trapped inside a classroom with a gunman repeatedly called 911 during this week's attack on a Texas elementary school, including one who pleaded, 'Please send the police now,' as nearly 20 officers waited in the hallway for more than 45 minutes, authorities said Friday.
'I don't deserve this': Amber Heard responds to online hate
As Johnny Depp's high-profile libel lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard wound down, Heard took her final opportunity on the stand to comment on the hate and backlash she’s endured online during the trial.
Three Canadian cities rank among the world's best for work-life balance
A new report says Ottawa, Vancouver and Toronto rank among the top 20 cities around the world when it comes to work-life balance.
New federal firearms bill will be introduced on Monday: Lametti
Federal Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino will table new firearms legislation on Monday, according to his colleague Justice Minister David Lametti. In an interview with CTV's Question Period that will air on Sunday, Lametti pointed to the advance notice given to the House of Commons, and confirmed the plan is to see the new bill unveiled shortly after MPs return to the Commons on May 30.
She smeared blood on herself and played dead: 11-year-old reveals chilling details of the massacre
An 11-year-old survivor of the Robb Elementary School massacre in Uvalde, Texas, feared the gunman would come back for her so she smeared herself in her friend's blood and played dead.
102-year-old veteran wins campaign for Dutch citizenship after a 70-year wait
For 70 years, Andre Hissink has held a grudge against the Dutch government, but this week, the 102-year-old Second World War veteran’s persistence paid off – the Dutch king granted his wish for a rare dual citizenship.
Canada raids emergency stockpile to send medical equipment to Ukraine
Canada has tapped into its own strategic stockpile of emergency medical supplies -- stored for a national emergency -- to help Ukraine. It has donated over 375,000 items of medical equipment and medicines from Canada's strategic stockpile since the invasion by Russia began.
'Died of a broken heart': Can it really happen?
Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, more commonly known as 'broken heart syndrome' or stress-induced cardiomyopathy, is an actual medical condition triggered by severe emotional or physical stress and is different from a heart attack.
Jury deliberations begin in Johnny Depp-Amber Heard trial
After a six-week trial in which Johnny Depp and Amber Heard tore into each other over the nasty details of their short marriage, both sides told a jury the exact same thing Friday -- they want their lives back.
Canada
-
Monkeypox in Canada: Act now to stop it, expert urges, before it's too late
With 26 cases of monkeypox now confirmed in Canada, health officials warn that number will likely grow in the coming days and weeks. However, one expert says the outbreak can be stopped if the country works quickly to get it under control.
-
Supreme Court rules Quebec City mosque killer to be eligible for parole in 25 years
Canada's highest court has ruled that Alexandre Bissonnette, who murdered six people at the Quebec City mosque in 2017, will be eligible for parole after 25 years.
-
More than 18 hours to find five N.S. mass shooting victims was 'deficient': lawyer
A lawyer for families of victims killed in the Nova Scotia mass shooting says an 18-hour delay in finding five bodies of those murdered is a sign of "deficient" policing.
-
Judge denies bail for protester charged in southern Alberta border blockade
A judge has denied bail for a man charged with conspiracy to commit murder at a border blockade in southern Alberta.
-
102-year-old veteran wins campaign for Dutch citizenship after a 70-year wait
For 70 years, Andre Hissink has held a grudge against the Dutch government, but this week, the 102-year-old Second World War veteran’s persistence paid off – the Dutch king granted his wish for a rare dual citizenship.
-
Wild video captures moment tornado touches down in Uxbridge, Ont.
New video has emerged showing the moment a tornado touched down in Uxbridge, Ont. over the weekend, ripping the roof off a local brewery.
World
-
3 more funerals for Buffalo victims in week of goodbyes
A mother and sister known for baking decadent pastries. A restaurant worker buying his 3-year-old's birthday cake. A father and die-hard Buffalo Bills fan who worked as a school bus aide.
-
Police in Texas waited 48 minutes in school before pursuing shooter
Students trapped inside a classroom with a gunman repeatedly called 911 during this week's attack on a Texas elementary school, including one who pleaded, 'Please send the police now,' as nearly 20 officers waited in the hallway for more than 45 minutes, authorities said Friday.
-
Judge dismisses Trump's lawsuit, allowing N.Y. probe to go on
A federal judge on Friday dismissed Donald Trump's lawsuit against New York Attorney General Letitia James, rejecting the former president's claim that she targeted him out of political animus and allowing her civil investigation into his business practices to continue.
-
Fire that killed 11 newborn babies in Senegal hospital may have been started by short circuit, says minister
A hospital fire that killed 11 newborn babies in Senegal may have been caused by an electrical short circuit, the country's health minister said Thursday.
-
Al Jazeera says it will go to ICC over killing of journalist Shireen Abu Akleh
The Al Jazeera news network says it will submit a case file to the International Criminal Court on the killing of reporter Shireen Abu Akleh, who was shot dead earlier this month during an Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank.
-
Iran seizes 2 Greek tankers in Persian Gulf as tensions rise
Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard seized two Greek oil tankers Friday in helicopter-launched raids in the Persian Gulf, officials said. The action appeared to be retaliation for Athens' assistance in the U.S. seizure of crude oil from an Iranian-flagged tanker this week in the Mediterranean Sea over violating Washington's crushing sanctions on the Islamic Republic.
Politics
-
New federal firearms bill will be introduced on Monday: Lametti
Federal Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino will table new firearms legislation on Monday, according to his colleague Justice Minister David Lametti. In an interview with CTV's Question Period that will air on Sunday, Lametti pointed to the advance notice given to the House of Commons, and confirmed the plan is to see the new bill unveiled shortly after MPs return to the Commons on May 30.
-
Supreme Court rules Quebec City mosque killer to be eligible for parole in 25 years
Canada's highest court has ruled that Alexandre Bissonnette, who murdered six people at the Quebec City mosque in 2017, will be eligible for parole after 25 years.
-
Feds aiming to address airport 'bottlenecks' in time for summer travel season
Transport Minister Omar Alghabra says the federal government is working with groups on the ground to resolve air travel 'bottlenecks' in time for a busy summer.
Health
-
Monkeypox cases near 200 in more than 20 countries: WHO
The World Health Organization says nearly 200 cases of monkeypox have been reported in more than 20 countries not usually known to have outbreaks of the unusual disease, but described the epidemic as 'containable' and proposed creating a stockpile to equitably share the limited vaccines and drugs available worldwide.
-
'Died of a broken heart': Can it really happen?
Takotsubo cardiomyopathy, more commonly known as 'broken heart syndrome' or stress-induced cardiomyopathy, is an actual medical condition triggered by severe emotional or physical stress and is different from a heart attack.
-
The next pandemic? Why monkeypox isn't the new COVID
Health experts say that the monkeypox virus isn’t likely to have a similar impact to SARS-CoV-2, mainly because it isn’t a new virus and doesn’t spread the same way.
Sci-Tech
-
Chile could be home to world's oldest tree, study suggests
A lush green forest in southern Chile might be home to the world's oldest tree after a new study found that an ancient alerce tree known as 'great grandfather' could be more than 5,000 years old.
-
Paris Hilton wants to be the 'Queen of the Metaverse'
Paris Hilton has recently embraced two buzzy but speculative trends in tech: the metaverse, a vision for an immersive virtual world that still does not exist; and non-fungible tokens, known as NFTs, which refer to pieces of digital content linked to the blockchain, the digital ledger system underpinning various cryptocurrencies.
-
Unique optical phenomena puts on colourful show in Maritime sky
Circumhorizontal arcs put on a colourful show in parts of the Maritimes Thursday.
Entertainment
-
Movie reviews: 'Top Gun: Maverick' is a high-flying sequel with a need for speed
This week, pop culture critic Richard Crouse reviews new movies: 'Top Gun: Maverick,' 'The Bob’s Burgers Movie' and 'The Middle Man.'
-
'I don't deserve this': Amber Heard responds to online hate
As Johnny Depp's high-profile libel lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard wound down, Heard took her final opportunity on the stand to comment on the hate and backlash she’s endured online during the trial.
-
Defence argues Hoggard treated women disrespectfully but is not 'sadistic serial rapist'
Defence lawyers told a Toronto jury Friday that Jacob Hoggard may have been cavalier and disrespectful towards women, but the Canadian musician is not a 'sadistic serial rapist.'
Business
-
Russia slams sanctions, seeks to blame West for food crisis
Moscow pressed the West on Thursday to lift sanctions against Russia over the war in Ukraine, seeking to shift the blame for a growing food crisis that has been worsened by Kyiv's inability to ship millions of tons of grain and other agricultural products due to the conflict.
-
'Negative trajectory' in consumer confidence shows Canadians increasingly anxious about economy
Dropping consumer confidence numbers show that Canadians are growing increasingly anxious about the direction of the economy, said Nanos Research pollster Nik Nanos.
-
Aurora Cannabis shares fall 40 per cent after share sale amendment
Aurora Cannabis Inc.'s share price fell by about 40 per cent, after the company announced it sold US$150 million worth of shares.
Lifestyle
-
'Mom, you gotta carry on': 58-year-old Winnipegger inspired to graduate high school by late son
Fifty-eight-year-old Vivian Ketchum is set to receive her high school diploma at a graduation ceremony at the University of Winnipeg next month. It is a moment that is decades in the making.
-
Crossword-loving grandma who thought she won $5,000 realized her lotto prize was actually a lot larger
A recent lottery winner excitedly told her daughter she was suddenly $5,000 richer. She was wrong.
-
102-year-old veteran wins campaign for Dutch citizenship after a 70-year wait
For 70 years, Andre Hissink has held a grudge against the Dutch government, but this week, the 102-year-old Second World War veteran’s persistence paid off – the Dutch king granted his wish for a rare dual citizenship.
Sports
-
Hockey Canada settles suit over alleged sexual assault involving world junior players
Hockey Canada and the Canadian Hockey League have reportedly settled a lawsuit with a woman who claimed she was sexually assaulted by eight members of the 2018 Canadian world junior hockey team.
-
Oilers knock off Flames in OT to advance to Western Conference final
The Edmonton Oilers defeated their Alberta rival Calgary Flames 5-4 in overtime in Game 5 of their second-round NHL playoff series Thursday night to advance to the Western Conference final.
-
Winnipeg Blue Bombers release receiver after sexual assault allegation
The Winnipeg Blue Bombers released veteran receiver Jalen Saunders earlier this week after investigating an allegation of sexual assault against him.
Autos
-
Edmunds compares Jeep Grand Wagoneer and Cadillac Escalade
Jeep has come out with a new three-row large SUV, the Grand Wagoneer. It dusts off a nameplate not used since the early 1990s and stands as the brand's most expensive and luxurious model.
-
Going green: IndyCar to use renewable fuel beginning in 2023
IndyCar will become the first North American racing series to use 100 per cent renewable fuel in its race cars.
-
Indy 500 drivers find crypto craze fuels needed sponsorship
At Indy, where culture is traditionally steeped in bricks more than bitcoin, the shift to cryptocurrency sponsorship may still be a curious concept to the almost 300,000 fans who will pack the track Sunday. But inside the paddock -- and locker rooms around the sports world - new forms of digital money help pay the bills and salaries for teams and athletes.
