As the threat of war lurked on February 24, 2022, he first addressed 44 million citizens of Ukraine, and then turned his attention to 144 million Russians next door. An impassioned bid to save his country didn't work, and in hours, the former comedian and actor was a wartime president
Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Image: Matt Dunham / Pool / AFP
KYIV, Ukraine — He appeared on Ukrainian television early Thursday morning as the threat of war was pressing down. First, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine addressed the 44 million citizens of Ukraine. Then he turned to the 144 million Russians living next door and beseeched them to prevent an attack that evoked the darkest eras in Europe since World War II.
“Listen to the voice of reason,” Zelenskyy said after midnight Thursday in Kyiv. “The Ukrainian people want peace.”
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