(Reuters) - When Ukrainians toppled a pro-Russian president last year, nowhere was the euphoria greater than in Lviv, a short drive from the EU border, where people have dreamt for generations of escaping Moscow's orbit to join the West.
More than a year of war and economic collapse later, nowhere else has the disillusionment been felt more harshly.
"Everyone thought Ukraine would suddenly turn into Poland," said mechanic Taras Yakubovsky, sitting by a cast-iron woodburner in his small garage, where work has dried up because customers can no longer afford car repairs. "But we've become more like Europe's Somalia."
WNU Editor: The city of Lviv is as European as you can get .... this region is also ground zero for nationalist sentiment in Ukraine. This growing sense of "disillusionment" is also not a surprise ....times are tough throughout Ukraine, and the promises that were made when the revolution occurred have not been delivered .... and cannot be delivered as long as the conflict continues in the eastern part of the country.