‘We’ll defeat everyone’: Ukraine leader warns against panic, declares martial law
In video message to citizens, President Zelensky says Russia attacking military infrastructure, warns developments will influence future for all of Europe
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday that Russia was attacking his country’s “military infrastructure” and border guards, but urged citizens not to panic and vowed victory.
In a video message posted on Facebook after Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the launch of a military operation against Ukraine, Zelensky also introduced martial law across the country, adding that he had spoken by phone with US President Joe Biden.
“This morning, Russia launched a new military operation against our state,” Zelensky said in a separate message posted on the presidential website.
“This is a completely groundless, cynical invasion,” he said.
“We, the citizens of Ukraine, have been determining our own future since 1991,” he said in reference to the year of the Soviet Union’s collapse.
“But now, what is being decided is not only our country’s future, but also the future of how Europe will live.”
Zelensky speaks to the nation. He says he's declared martial law and urges Ukrainians to stay home.
“We are working. The army is working," he says. "Don't panic. We are strong. We are ready for everything. We will defeat everyone. Because we are Ukraine.” pic.twitter.com/vamBb0pLWu
— max seddon (@maxseddon) February 24, 2022
“We are working. The army is working,” Zelensky said, according to an English translation of part of his message from the Moscow bureau chief of the Financial Times. “Don’t panic. We are strong. We are ready for everything. We will defeat everyone. Because we are Ukraine.”
Putin’s announcement of a military campaign came just hours after Zelensky on Wednesday night rejected Moscow’s claims that his country posed a threat to Russia and made a passionate, last-minute plea for peace.
“The people of Ukraine and the government of Ukraine want peace,” Zelensky said in an emotional address, speaking in Russian in a direct appeal to Russian citizens. “But if we come under attack, if we face an attempt to take away our country, our freedom, our lives and lives of our children, we will defend ourselves. When you attack us, you will see our faces, not our backs.”
In his comments before the Russian assault began, Zelensky said he had asked to arrange a call with Putin but the Kremlin did not respond.
In an apparent reference to Putin’s move to authorize the deployment of the Russian military to “maintain peace” in eastern Ukraine, Zelensky warned that “this step could mark the start of a big war on the European continent.”
“Any provocation, any spark could trigger a blaze that will destroy everything,” he said.
He challenged the Russian propaganda claims, saying that “you are told that this blaze will bring freedom to the people of Ukraine, but the Ukrainian people are free.”
The Times of Israel Community.