Currently weapon has become something usual and ordinary in the hands of Ukrainians. But just last years none of those, who bought rifles and shotguns now, could imagine they would have firearm in their homes. Now they are all in support of the gun trade and use it for self-defense in a legal way.
Ukraine is the only country in Europe with no law regulation for the civilian firearm ownership. During the whole period of independence, the government of Ukraine tried to propose more than dozen laws but none of them have been accepted. The only way to own a firearm legally is to purchase a rifle or a shotgun for hunting. It’s absolutely legal to purchase any modifications of non-automatic army weapon (such as AK or M16), but owning the handgun is prohibited by the law.
In 2014, during the tragic events in Ukraine (Maydan, Crimea annexation, the war in Donbass), sales of hunting weapons increased by several times. It happened because people couldn’t trust and rely on the government that do nothing to protect rights and freedom of citizens. According to the official statistics by the end of 2014 there were 558033 registered owners of rifles and shotguns already. By March 2016 the number of weapon’s owners increased to 888047.
Nowadays, shotguns are in high demand. Future owners of firearms are to learn how to handle it safely. Quite often, they would also learn how to take part in military actions, in many cases as a part of a small mobile team. Russian hidden aggression to Ukraine makes the prospect of the military conflict being expanded from the East of the country to the central regions quite realistic and motivates Ukrainians to be prepared for the war in the future. However, the main reason for the firearm to be legalised is not to convert civilians into the army, but to protect one’s family and belongings. It looks like firearm is a modern version of the amulet, giving its owner an extra power. Not everyone is comfortable to point it at the aggressor and shoot but everyone feels safer having one.
