Russia is aiming to erase Ukraine, its historical past and folks, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy mentioned in a video on Wednesday because the seventh day of Moscow’s invasion of its neighbour began with heavy shelling of the Black Sea port of Mariupol.
Moscow switched to strikes on Ukrainian cities on Tuesday and appeared poised for an advance on Kyiv because the West tightened an financial noose round Russia in retaliation. Learn full story
However Zelenskiy, unshaven and carrying a khaki T-shirt, mentioned the West’s response was not sufficient, calling for extra worldwide help, together with backing Ukraine’s bid to affix the European Union.
“That is no time to be impartial,” mentioned Zelenskiy, whose defiant and emotional tone in common video addresses have supplied his nation help and management within the warfare, which he mentioned killed almost 6,000 Russian troops up to now.
Referring to the Tuesday shelling in Kyiv subsequent to Babyn Yar – the positioning of a World Conflict Two bloodbath of tens of 1000’s of Jews by German occupation troops and Ukrainian auxiliaries – Zelenskiy mentioned: “This strike proves that for many individuals in Russia our Kyiv is totally international.”
“They don’t know a factor about Kyiv, about our historical past. However all of them have orders to erase our historical past, erase our nation, erase us all.”
Ukraine’s south-eastern Azov Sea port of Mariupol was underneath fixed shelling and unable to evacuate the injured whereas Kherson, on the Black Sea to the west, was fully surrounded by invading Russian forces, native authorities mentioned on Wednesday.
“All of us died once more by Babyn Yar. Though the world has promised many times that it’s going to by no means occur once more,” mentioned Zelenskiy.
“Don’t you see what is going on? That’s why it is vitally essential now that you simply, hundreds of thousands of Jews all over the world, don’t stay silent. As a result of Nazism is born in silence. Scream about murdering of civilians, scream about murdering of Ukrainians.”
(Reuters)