Volodymyr Zelenskiy - The African Mirror

Feb

2023

Zelenskiy wants tougher Europe, Putin evokes victory over Nazis

UKRAINIAN President Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged European leaders visiting Kyiv to pile more sanctions on Russia, where President Vladimir Putin evoked a famous World War Two victory over the Nazis to rally his nation. The West has imposed sweeping punitive measures since Russia's nearly year-old invasion of Ukraine that has devastated cities, killed tens of thousands of people, forced millions to flee their homes and shaken the global economy. In the latest violence, a Russian missile destroyed apartments in Kramatorsk, killing at least three people and trapping others under rubble, police said. Moscow said it struck U.S.-made rocket launchers in the area about 55 km (34…

Jan

2023

By The African Mirror

Zelenskiy ally threatens jailings after high-profile graft allegations

WORLD

TOM BALMFORTH and OLENA HARMASH A top ally of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said corrupt officials would be "actively" jailed, setting out a zero-tolerance approach after the most high-profile graft allegations since Russia's invasion came to light. Ukraine has a long history of corruption and shaky governance, though there have been few examples since last year's invasion as Kyiv has fought back Russian forces and received Western financial and military support. On Sunday, anti-corruption police said they had detained the deputy infrastructure minister on suspicion of receiving a $400,000 kickback to facilitate the import of generators into wartime Ukraine last September. Separately, a newspaper…

Jan

2023

By The African Mirror

Ukrainian interior minister killed in helicopter crash near Kyiv

WORLD

MAX HUNDER and TOM BALMFORTH Fourteen people including Ukraine's interior minister and a child were killed when a helicopter crashed in fog near a nursery outside Kyiv, in what President Volodymyr Zelenskiy called a "terrible tragedy". Several bodies lay on the ground of a courtyard, their boots sticking out from under blankets, after the helicopter - described by the air force spokesperson as a French Super Puma - slammed into a building in Brovary, northeast of the capital. The crash caused a large fire, and an entire side of the local nursery building was charred. The Kyiv region's governor said…

Dec

2022

By The African Mirror

Ukraine to boost diplomacy in Africa, other regions

WORLD

UKRAINIAN President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday that Kyiv would intensify diplomatic efforts in Africa, Latin America and Asia to take advantage of "colossal economic potential" and other international benefits. African countries have had varying responses to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, as some countries like South Africa have close trade and security ties with Russia they do not want to jeopardise. In his nightly video address, Zelenskiy said diplomats would focus on countries where Ukraine has lesser influence, particularly in the Global South. "There is the colossal economic potential and considerable diplomatic avenues," he said. He singled out votes in support of…

Dec

2022

By The African Mirror

Putin says Russia wants end to war in Ukraine

WORLD

PRESIDENT Vladimir Putin said that Russia wants an end to the war in Ukraine and that this would inevitably involve a diplomatic solution. Putin made the comments a day after U.S. President Joe Biden hosted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in the White House and promised him continued and unwavering U.S. support. "Our goal is not to spin the flywheel of military conflict, but, on the contrary, to end this war," Putin said. "We will strive for an end to this, and the sooner the better, of course." White House spokesman John Kirby said Putin has "shown absolutely zero indication that he's willing…

Dec

2022

By The African Mirror

U.S. Patriot system won’t thwart Russia’s plans for Ukraine, says Kremlin

WORLD

STEVE HOLLAND and PAVEL POLITYUK U.S. supplies of advanced Patriot missile systems to Ukraine announced during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's visit to Washington, will not help settle the conflict or prevent Russia from achieving its goals, Moscow. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that there had been no signs of readiness for peace talks during Zelenskiy's visit, proving that the United States was fighting a proxy war with Russia "to the last Ukrainian". "This is not conducive to a speedy settlement, quite the contrary," Peskov said of the Patriot system. "And this cannot prevent the Russian Federation from achieving its goals…

Dec

2022

By The African Mirror

Russia fires scores of missiles in one of its biggest attacks on Ukraine

WORLD

TOM BALMFORTH and OLENA HARMASH RUSSIA fired more than 70 missiles at Ukraine in one of its biggest attacks since the start of the war, knocking out power in the second-biggest city and forcing Kyiv to implement emergency blackouts nationwide, Ukrainian officials said. Three people were killed when an apartment block was hit in central Kryvyi Rih and another died in shelling in Kherson in the south, they said. Russian-installed officials in occupied eastern Ukraine said 12 people had died by Ukrainian shelling. In an evening video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia still had enough missiles for several…

Dec

2022

By The African Mirror

Russia’s war on Ukraine latest news: Fighting rages in east, Zelenskiy seeks energy aid

WORLD

RUSSIA and Ukraine pounded each other's forces in heavy fighting in the eastern region of Donetsk as Kyiv's allies met in Paris to provide urgent aid to help Ukrainians survive freezing winter temperatures. DIPLOMACY/ECONOMY * Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told Ukraine's allies gathered in Paris on Tuesday he needed at least 800 million euros ($840 million) in urgent winter energy aid as Russian forces target civilian infrastructure across the country.\ * Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese leader Xi Jinping will hold talks to discuss the events of 2022 in late December, the Russian business daily Vedomosti reported on Tuesday. * The Group of Seven (G7)…

Dec

2022

By The African Mirror

Fighting rages in east Ukraine, Europe agrees extra military aid to Ukraine

WORLD

NICK STARKOV and PAVEL POLITYUK RUSSIAN forces pounded targets in eastern and southern Ukraine with missiles, drones and artillery, Ukraine's General Staff said, while millions remained without power in subzero temperatures after further strikes on key infrastructure. European Union foreign ministers agreed to put another 2 billion euros ($2.1 billion) into a fund that has been used to pay for military support for Ukraine after it was largely depleted during almost 10 months of the war. The EU ministers were also due to discuss a ninth package of sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, while Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was set to…

Nov

2022

By The African Mirror

Ukraine’s Zelenskiy: Heavy Russian losses in the east

WORLD

RUSSIA is suffering heavy losses in continuing "fierce" attacks in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region and is preparing new assaults on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday. "Very fierce Russian attacks on Donetsk region are continuing. The enemy is suffering serious losses there," Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address. Zelenskiy said he believed Russia was "concentrating forces and means for a possible repetition of mass attacks on our infrastructure, energy in the first instance". Thomson Reuters Foundation