Zelenskyy vows victory over Russia, says Ukraine will not forgive
Lviv, Ukraine, Jan 1 (EFE).- Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy has promised victory over Russia in his New Year address, as invading Russian forces launched dozens of Kamikaze drones in the latest wave of attacks on Ukraine.
“We fight and will continue to fight. For the sake of the main word: ‘victory.’ It will be for sure. We are approaching it for 311 days,” he said at the dawn of the New Year.
The Ukrainian leader called 2022 “a year of losses for Ukraine, for the whole of Europe, and the whole world.”
But he then clarified that “we haven’t lost anything. It was taken from us. Ukraine did not lose its sons and daughters – they were taken away by murderers. Ukrainians did not lose their homes – they were destroyed by terrorists.
“We did not lose our lands – they were occupied by invaders. The world did not lose peace – Russia destroyed it.”
Zelenskyy stressed it was impossible to forget and forgive Russia for its aggression on its neighbor, but “it is possible to win.”
“We do not know for sure what the new year 2023 will bring us. But (we’re) ready for anything,” he continued. “New achievements? We will be happy. New hits? We will be steadfast. Continuation of the fight? We will fight. And when we win, we will hug.”
Ukraine’s air force reported Sunday that Ukrainian cities had come under attack from missile strikes on New Year’s Eve, with at least one person dying in Kyiv.
“On the night of December 31, 2022, to January 1, 2023, the Russian invaders attacked Ukraine with Iranian-made Shahed-131/136 kamikaze drones,” the statement read, according to Ukrinform news agency.
Forty-five Kamikaze drones were intercepted, 13 of them in 2022 and 32 in 2023, it added.
Kyiv’s military administration, meanwhile, confirmed that 32 missiles were shot down overnight.
Hours before his speech marking the New Year, Zelenskyy addressed the Russian people in a Telegram message, saying there would never be forgiveness for their country’s actions.
“The terrorist state will not be forgiven. And those who give orders for such strikes, and those who carry them out, will not receive a pardon,” he highlighted.
Russian president Vladimir Putin wants to show that he has the army behind him, Zelenskyy said, but “he is just hiding. He hides behind the troops, behind missiles, behind the walls of his residences and palaces.”
“He hides behind you and burns your country and your future. No one will ever forgive you for terror. No one in the world will forgive you for this. Ukraine will never forgive,” he concluded.
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