Kiev: Ukraines First Lady Olena Zelenska has released her first public statement in a letter addressed to the global community.
In the statement, she relays the horrors of war, particularly for women and children. She also named some child casualties of the war so far:
“Eight-year-old Alice who died on the streets of Okhtyrka while her grandfather tried to protect her.”
“Polina from Kyiv, who died in the shelling with her parents.”
“Fourteen-year-old Arseniy was hit in the head by wreckage, and could not be saved because an ambulance could not get to him on time because of intense fires.”
“When Russia says that it is ‘not waging war against civilians’, I call out the names of these murdered children first,” said Olena Zelenska.
She thanked the support of the international community and neighbouring nations who have allowed refugees to enter, the BBC reported.
She also repeated the calls of her husband, President Volodymyr Zelensky, for Western countries to declare a no-fly zone. NATO has resisted this action because it would involve Western forces likely engaging militarily with Russian aircraft.
“We need those in power to close the sky. Close the sky and we will manage the war on the ground ourselves,” the Ukrainian First Lady added.
“With this letter, I testify and tell the world: the war in Ukraine is not a war ‘somewhere out there’. This is a war in Europe, close to the EU borders.”
“If we don’t stop Russian President Vladimir Putin, who threatens to start a nuclear war, there will be no safe place in the world for any of us.”
(IANS)
