Lviv/Ukraine: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Russian forces are encircling major cities and want to create such a pathetic situation that the citizens of Ukraine will have to cooperate with them. However, Zelensky warned on Saturday that the strategy would not be successful and that Russia would suffer long-term losses if it did not end the war. Ukraine’s president accused the Kremlin (Russian presidential office) of deliberately creating a “humanitarian crisis”.
In his video message to the nation, Zelensky said, “This is a completely premeditated move. Just picture for yourself that in that stadium in Moscow there are 14,000 dead bodies and thousands of injured people. This is the price Russia has paid so far in the war.” The video was recorded outside in Kyiv, with the presidential office behind them. The Ukrainian President said, “The time has come to restore territorial integrity and bring justice to Ukraine. Otherwise, Russia will have to pay a heavy price for not doing so, from which they will not be able to rise for generations.”
Zelensky again urged Putin to meet him directly. He said, “It’s time to meet, time to talk. I want everyone to listen to me, especially in Moscow.” Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin organized a massive rally in praise of his army amid fierce shelling by Russian troops on Ukrainian cities.
Russia’s president addressed a packed Moscow stadium on Friday and said Kremlin troops fought “shoulder to shoulder” and supported each other. “This kind of unity had not been seen for a long time,” he told the enthusiastic crowd. The invasion led to anti-war protests within Russia, and the rally was suspected of whether it was a Kremlin-produced display of patriotism. The event took place when Russia suffered more losses than expected on the battlefield.
Police said there were more than 200,000 people in and around Luzhniki Stadium for the Moscow event, which sang patriotic songs such as “Made in the USSR” with the opening lyrics “Ukraine and Crimea, Belarus and Moldova, it”. is all my country.”
Putin’s appearance marked a change in contrast to his relatively isolated stay during recent weeks when he has been shown meeting with world leaders and his staff at extraordinarily long tables or via videoconferencing.
Stepping away from the conflict, three Russian cosmonauts arrived at the International Space Station on Friday in bright yellow and blue flight suits matching the colors of the Ukrainian flag. Since the start of the war, many people have used Ukraine’s flag and its colors to show solidarity with the country.
Vladimir Medinsky, who led Russian negotiators in several rounds of talks with Ukraine, said after the rally that the two sides had moved closer to an agreement on Ukraine not joining NATO and adopting a neutral position. He said, quoting Russian media, that the two sides had come about half a distance on the issue of demilitarization of Ukraine.
On the other hand, heavy shelling continued in Kyiv on Saturday and the Russian army established an aircraft repair center on the outskirts of Lviv, close to the border with Poland. Ukrainian officials said late Friday that Russian forces had lost control of the besieged southern port city of Mariupol as far as the Azov Sea and Russian forces were still trying to storm the city.
Russia has taken control of the Ajovstal steel unit based in Mariupol, facing Russian siege. This unit is one of the largest steel units in Europe. Vadim Denisenko, the adviser in Ukraine’s Interior Ministry, said on Saturday, “I can say that we have lost this enormous economic asset. In fact, Europe’s biggest steel unit is being destroyed.” The Kyiv regional administration said on Saturday that it had carried out heavy attacks in the suburbs of Bucha, Hostomel, Irpin, and Moshchun in north-west Kyiv. The administration said the city of Slavutich, located 165 km from the capital Kyiv, was “isolated”.
Meanwhile, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Major General Igor Konasenkov said on Saturday that Russian forces have used their recent hypersonic missile for the first time in combat. He said that the missile was targeted at the place where Ukraine had kept its missiles. Ukraine’s Deputy Prime Minister Iryana Vereshchuk said on Saturday that Ukrainian and Russian officials have agreed to provide humanitarian aid to war-torn Mariupol, Kyiv, and Luhansk regions and build 10 humanitarian corridors to allow civilians out.
He also announced plans to provide humanitarian aid to the city of Kherson, which is currently under the control of Russian forces. Mikhailo Podolik, an adviser to Zelensky, portrayed the Russian assessment as “provoking tensions in the media”. He tweeted, “Our position has not changed. a Strong security guarantee with a ceasefire, troop withdrawal, and solid formulas.”
Meanwhile, Norway was involved in a plane crash during a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) war exercise. And American soldiers were killed. Given this information on Saturday, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said that the exercise has nothing to do with the Ukraine war.
Jonas Store tweeted that four US soldiers were killed in the accident that happened on Friday night. He tweeted, “These US soldiers were taking part in a joint exercise by NATO. We extend our deepest condolences to the families and comrades of the slain soldiers.” According to the Norwegian military, the plane that crashed was a V-22B Osprey of the US Navy.
