However, he warned Saturday that this strategy would fail and Moscow would lose if it does not end the war.
Zelenskyy claimed that the Kremlin had deliberately created “a humanitarian disaster” and asked for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting. Putin held a massive rally in Moscow where he lavished praises on Russian forces Friday to show what was at stake.
“Imagine yourself in the stadium in Moscow where there are 14,000 bodies, and tens to thousands more injured or maimed. In a nightly address to the nation, Zelenskyy stated that these were the Russian costs of the invasion. He was recorded outside the Kyiv presidential office.
A rally and concert were held in Moscow to mark the anniversary of Russia’s annexed Crimea. It was seized from Ukraine on 2014, when it took control of it. It featured patriotic songs like “Made In the U.S.R.” with the opening line “Ukraine, Crimea, Belarus, and Moldova, it’s all my country.”
Putin stated to the cheering crowd, “We haven’t had unity like that for a long while.”
The rally took place as Russia has faced heavier-than-expected losses on the battlefield and increasingly authoritarian rule at home. There were suspicions that the event was orchestrated by the Kremlin to show patriotism. Thousands of protestors against Russia’s invasion in Ukraine have been detained by Russian police.
In Ukraine, fighting continued at multiple fronts. The battle for Mariupol, the city that suffered the most from the war, saw Russian and Ukrainian forces take control of the Azovstal steel facility. Vadym Denysenko was an adviser to Ukraine’s interior ministry.
Denysenko stated in televised remarks that “I can confirm that we have lost the economic giant.” “In fact, one the largest metallurgical plant in Europe is being destroyed.”
Russian military claimed Saturday that its latest hypersonic missile was used in combat for the first-time. Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov of the Russian Defense Ministry stated that Kinzhal missiles had destroyed an underground storage facility containing Ukrainian missiles and ammunition in the western Ivano-Frankivsk area of Ukraine.
Konashenkov stated that Russian forces used the anti-ship Bastion missile to attack Ukrainian military facilities close to Odesa, a Black Sea port. The weapon was first used by Russia in its 2016 military campaign against Syria.
Ukrainian and Russian officials have agreed to create 10 humanitarian corridors to bring aid in and residents out, one in Mariupol, many in the Kyiv region, and several in Luhansk, said Iryna Vereshchuk, Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister.
She also announced her plans to deliver humanitarian assistance to Kherson, currently under the control of Russian forces.
Zelenskyy stated in his nightly video address that Russian forces have been blocking the biggest cities to create conditions so difficult for Ukrainians to cooperate. According to him, the Russians have blocked supplies from reaching surrounded Ukrainian cities in central and southeast Ukraine.
According to him, the Moscow rally that was held to commemorate Russia’s 2014 annexe of the Crimea Peninsula from Ukraine attracted around 200,000 people or the same number as Russian military personnel who were involved in the current invasion.
“It is time to restore Ukraine’s territorial integrity and justice. Zelenskyy stated that Russia’s costs would be so high that it will not be possible to rise again in the next several generations.
Putin’s attendance at Friday’s rally was a departure from his isolation in recent weeks. In those weeks, he has been seen meeting with world leaders and staff at long tables or via videoconference.
Putin tried to make the war seem just by paraphrasing the Bible to describe Russia’s troops. He said: “There is no greater love that giving one’s soul to one’s friends.”
He took to the podium where a sign said “For a World without Nazism,” and railed against his enemies in Ukraine, claiming they were “neoNazis”. He also claimed that his actions were necessary in order to prevent “genocide”, an idea which was flatly rejected worldwide by leaders.
Putin’s quotations of the Bible, an 18th-century Russian admiral and other historical figures reflect his growing focus on religion and history as a binding force in Russia’s postSoviet society. His characterization of his enemies in Nazist form evoked what many Russians consider Russia’s greatest hour, the defense and liberation of their motherland from Germany during World War II.
The Kremlin has taken a tougher stance against dissent in the aftermath of the invasion. They have arrested thousands of protestors, banned sites like Facebook and Twitter, as well as issued harsh prison sentences for false reporting about the war. This is what Moscow calls a “special military operations.”
Three Russian cosmonauts arrived at the International Space Station Friday wearing bright yellow flight suits and blue accents that match the colors of Ukraine’s flag.
Many people have shown solidarity with Ukraine since the beginning of the war by using the flag and colors of the Ukrainian flag.
Oleg Artemyev, cosmonaut, said that every crew selects its suits and that they had a lot yellow material. “That’s why we had yellow.”
Vladimir Medinsky, the Russian negotiator who led several rounds of negotiations with Ukraine, stated that the sides are closer to an agreement on Ukraine’s decision to drop its bid for NATO membership and to adopt a neutral status. Russian media reported that he stated that the sides were now “halfway” in their discussions on the issue of demilitarization.
Mikhailo Podolyak was an advisor to Zelenskyy and said that the assessment was meant “to provoke tension within the media.” He tweeted, “Our positions remain unchanged. “Ceasefire, withdrawal from troops and strong security guarantees with concrete formulations.”
British Chief of Defense Intelligence, Lt. Gen. Jim Hockenhull, warned that Russian forces have shifted to a strategy of attrition after failing to seize major cities in Ukraine. This will result in increased civilian casualties and worsening humanitarian crises.
Hospitals, schools, and other buildings that provide safety for people in Ukraine have been targeted. Ludmyla Daniisova, the human rights commissioner for Ukraine’s Parliament, stated that at least 130 people were saved by Wednesday’s attack on a Mariupol theater being used as a shelter.
Denisova stated that “but according to our data there are still more then 1,300 people in those basements, in the bomb shelter.” “We pray they all live, but there is not much information.”
On Friday, satellite images from Maxar Technologies showed that a long line formed of cars leaving Mariupol to assist people fleeing. Zelenskyy stated that more than 9,000 people had been able to evacuate the city within the last day.
A missile strike near Lviv claimed the death of one person, making it the most direct attack to the center of the city. Satellite photos revealed that the strike damaged two buildings and destroyed a repair hangar. Ukraine claimed it destroyed two of the six missiles that were fired from the Black Sea.
With its growing population of around 200,000, Lviv has become an important crossroads for those fleeing other parts Ukraine or for those wishing to join the fight.
At least one person was killed in early morning gunshots that struck a Kyiv residential building. According to emergency services, 98 people were evacuated from this building while Vitali Klitschko, the Kyiv Mayor, said that 19 were injured.
Officials in Ukraine claim that a fireman was also killed in a Russian attack on an area where firefighters tried to extinguish a flame in Nataevka in the Zaporizhzhia Region. Pavlo Kyrylenko, the regional governor, said that two other people were also killed in strikes on Kramatorsk’s eastern city.
Major General Oleksandr Pavlyuk is leading the defense for the region around Ukraine’s capital. He stated that his forces were well-placed to defend the city, and promised: “We will not give up.” We will fight to the very end. We will fight until the end, to the very last bullet.