Zelenskiy Marks War Anniversary Vowing To Flight On
Kyiv : Ukraine will not betray the sacrifices made by its people in a four-year war just to make peace with Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday, as divisions among key allies marred commemorations for the start of the conflict.
European countries had hoped for a new sanctions package against Russia as well as a 90 billion euro loan to Ukraine, but Hungary, which maintains close ties with Moscow, continued to veto both on Monday.
Hungary and neighboring Slovakia accuse Kiev of deliberately blocking Russian oil supplies through the Druzhba pipeline, which Ukraine says it is trying to repair after a Russian attack last month.
EUROPEAN GUESTS BUT NOT LEADERS AT KIEV CEREMONIES
Zelenskiy was to welcome Western European dignitaries, including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, to Kiev for ceremonies commemorating the anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion on February 24, 2022. But unlike previous years, no major Western leaders were expected.
In his morning speech, Zelenskiy invited US President Donald Trump to Kiev and said, “Putin could not achieve his goals. He did not break the Ukrainian people. He did not win this war.” said:
“Only by visiting Ukraine and seeing our lives and our struggles with your own eyes… can you understand what this war is really about.”
Hundreds of thousands of soldiers on both sides were killed or wounded in Europe’s bloodiest conflict since World War II. Russian forces have also killed tens of thousands of Ukrainian civilians and destroyed Ukrainian cities through years of missile and drone attacks.
The ongoing peace talks between Russia and the USA, mediated by the United States, seem to have stopped due to the land issue.
Moscow, which has moved painfully slowly on the battlefield, insists that Ukraine must cede the last 20% of Donetsk’s eastern region, while Kiev insists it will not give up territory that thousands have died to defend.
“We want peace: strong, honorable, lasting peace,” Zelenskiy said, adding that he told peace negotiators: “Do not waste all these years, do not devalue all the struggle, courage, dignity, everything that Ukraine has experienced. We cannot give this away, we must not give it, we must not forget, we must not betray.”
French President Emmanuel Macron said on channel X that Russia was paying a heavy price for its small territorial gains in Ukraine: “One day the Russians will understand the magnitude of the crime committed in their name.”
Polish President Karol Nawrocki also said on the X channel that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine poses a serious threat to the security of Europe: “We respect the courage of the people who stand up for freedom every day.”
