War does not have a womanly face. Most foreign students left Ukraine after the war started. Majority of those who stayed are males. Among the very few women in Ukraine there are several in various universities of Ukraine. Our panel consists of four such courageous and resilient women, who love Ukraine as much as they love their future profession – to become medical doctors and help humankind. What made them stay in Ukraine and develop a deep commitment and love for the Ukrainian cause is the Ukrainian people, their beautiful country. East, West, North or South – it is the people-to-people linkages that finally matter. They shared their visions of how to share this bond of understanding and friendship between Ukraine and their respective countries. Anastasia Dube was born in Australia to a Ukrainian mother and a Zimbabwean father. She is a final year student of dentistry in Vinnitsa. Spending her childhood in Zimbabwe she learnt to speak five languages. In October 2019 came to Ukraine. Despite the challenges she explains her reluctance to leave is because “Ukraine has been a home to me. It has taught me that humanity actually exists, even in bleak blackout winters, people can still be kind and welcoming.” Somia Hazel Topno, a sixth-year student of medicine at the Vinnytsia National Medical University, from a city called Dhanbad, in the state of Jharkhand, India dreams to become a doctor. She came to Ukraine in 2019 and witnessed both the pandemic and the war. She loves Ukraine and says, “It’s a great honor and pride to stand with Ukraine, a country that has written its name with golden letters on the pages of our history.” Climencia Moyo arrived in 2019 for studying medicine at the Vinnytsia National Medical University—a place she calls her “second home”. She notes, “especially after witnessing one of my emergency medicine lecturers who, even while stationed on the frontlines, continued to teach us through online sessions. His courage and dedication reminded me why I was drawn to medicine in the first place and gave me the strength to push forward, inspiring my decision to return and complete my studies here.” Serena Omoko, a fourth-year medicine and surgery student at Vinnytsia National Medical University, hails from Sapele, an ancient city known for the production of timber and plywood, rubber, flour and feeds in Delta State Nigeria. Arriving in Ukraine in 2021, she faced the invasion and was evacuated via Poland to Nigeria for one and a half years. Having passed all online examinations and promoted to third year, she relocated back to Ukraine for offline studies in September 2023. Worry and uncertainty ringing loud through sirens and missile strikes in her mind, she says, “faith and courage kept me going that one day there will be light at the end of the tunnel. The war will come to an end.” Ishna Verma, a 6th year student from India, came to Ukraine in 2019. Facing evacuation, transfers, and personal decisions about whether to stay, she says her decision to stay in Ukraine was “because it my home away from home, empowering me as a woman and helping me find my identity.” She adds, “Since I can’t join the front line like many brave MEN AND WOMEN of Ukraine, I support the nation in every other way I can by volunteering, making donations and promoting the cause of peace. I am so proud to be here, and given a chance to do it again, I would still choose Ukraine all over again.” Moderator: Dr. Mridula Ghosh, Associate Professor, National University of Kyiv Mohyla Academy and Board Chair, East European Development Institute, Kyiv, Ukraine