ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy rejected a US evacuation offer, saying it needs ammunition and not transport, Ukraine’s embassy in Britain said on Twitter on Saturday.
“The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,” the embassy quoted the president as saying, adding that “Ukrainians are proud of their president.”
US intelligence officials are concerned that Kiev could fall under Russian control within days. But President Zelenskyy is not intimidated even though the Ukrainian forces are outnumbered and outgunned by the Russian army.
In a video posted Saturday morning on Twitter, Zelenskyy said: “We are not going to lay down our arms.”
The Ukrainian leader remains a “primary target for Russian aggression,” US State Department spokesman Ned Price said Thursday night, amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
President Zelenskyy also said that Russia had named him “target number one” and “my family is target number two. They want to destroy Ukraine politically by destroying the head of state. I will stay in the capital. My family is also in Ukraine.”
He also expressed frustration with the outcome of discussions he said he had with the heads of NATO member states.
“We have been left alone to defend our state,” Zelenskiy said. “Who is ready to fight alongside us? I do not see anyone. Who is willing to give Ukraine a guarantee of entry into NATO? Everyone is afraid.
However, in a tweet on Saturday, President Zelenskyy said: “It is a crucial moment to close the long discussion once and for all and decide on Ukraine’s #EU membership. Discussed with @eucopresident more effective assistance and heroic struggle of Ukrainians for their free future.”
Не вірте фейкам. pic.twitter.com/wiLqmCuz1p
— Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 26, 2022
internet outage
NetBlocks, an internet blocking observatory, said on Saturday that internet connectivity in Ukraine has been severely affected by the Russian invasion, particularly in the southern and eastern parts of the country where fighting has been most intense, Al Jazeera reported. .
Connectivity to GigaTrans, Ukraine’s main Internet provider, fell below 20 percent of normal levels before returning to higher levels in the early hours of Friday morning, NetBlocks said.
“We currently observe national connectivity at 87 percent of ordinary levels, a figure that reflects service interruptions, as well as population flight and the closure of homes and businesses since the morning of the 24th,” Alp told Reuters. Toker, director of NetBlocks.
This is the third day of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. UN Deputy High Commissioner for Refugees Kelly Clements told CNN that as many as four million people could try to cross borders as the crisis in Ukraine continues. The ongoing attack in Ukraine left 850,000 people internally displaced, while more than 120,000 people had fled the country.
At least 137 deaths and more than 300 injuries have been recorded in the ongoing attacks.
The invasion of Ukraine began Thursday morning with missile attacks on what Russia says were military bases and installations, followed by a multi-pronged ground assault that drew troops from separatist-held areas in the east; from the southern region of Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014, and from Belarus in the north.
Russia claims it is attacking Ukraine to “de-Nazify” the country and protect its allies in eastern Ukraine, particularly the Donbass region after it recognized two breakaway regions there.
The invasion has been condemned by the United States and its allies, many of whom have sanctioned Russia.
On Friday, the UN Security Council voted to condemn Russia’s action. Eleven of the 15 council members voted in favor of the resolution.
However, the decision was vetoed by Russia, which is one of the five permanent members of the security council with the right to veto.