Junior Moraes, a Brazilian-Ukrainian footballer, has donated $56,000 (just over 50,000 euros) to the Ukrainian government to aid in the country’s resistance to the Russian invasion, according to his club, just hours after the Brazilian-Ukrainian footballer left the country after the Russian offensive began.
Due to the war, Moraes, 34, who has played for Shakhtar since 2018, as well as other Brazilian colleagues, fled Ukraine on the same Monday. The player from Santos became a Ukrainian citizen and represented his country in 11 games.
For this reason, Moraes was impacted by a presidential edict prohibiting all Ukrainian citizens between the ages of 18 and 60 from leaving the nation and requiring them to pick up arms to defend it against Russian attack.
After journeying hundreds of kilometers from his home in Donetsk, where Russian-backed separatists gained control of the city, the Brazilian was able to cross the border and reach Poland.