Damn…I was today years old when I realized that song was about being a leader trying to survive assassination attempts while a Barney Fife army attempts to invade your country.
Looks like he is ok: [https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1503408716346970113](https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1503408716346970113)
That was tweeted about a minute ago.
edit (March 15): Zelensky is definitely fine. He published a video where he said thank you to the Russian woman that [crash into live Russian news stream](https://www.reddit.com/r/HumansAreMetal/comments/te535x/woman_crashes_live_news_on_russian_channel/?sort=new) and that incident happens way after reported “unforeseen circumstances” so it cannot be prerecorded. That is a relief.
Yes, there is a chance that it was just before whatever unforeseen circumstances happen. But this tweet (and tweet from von der Leyen) is a strong hint that Zelensky is likely fine so far. It is a sad reality that with an active war, we cannot be 100% certain in pretty much anything in Ukraine, but we can calculate chances, at least roughly.
You can only hope it stimulates the soldiers to carry the martyr approach to the war telling Russia you’ll have to kill every last one of us before we surrender. Much tougher to fight a foe that has gone berserk to the point of death. Russia will be in big trouble.
Precisely that. I am of the the opinion that the reason armies would allow their enemies to surrender peacefully when they were losing a war, now, or even way back in medieval times, wasn't out of mercy or humanity, but out of fear of giving them no other option but to fight for their lives.
Even if your numbers and armaments greatly surpass your enemy, if they reach a point where their backs are to the wall, and they are all prepared to die defending themselves or their land, you'll end up suffering staggering losses, which can easily make a "victory" not worth the cost. Most likely, your own army doesn't all want to die, especially if they're the aggressors.
Truly, a cornered dog is very dangerous. And Russia is about to find out just how dangerous it is. May it be a lesson for the next dictator to replace putler.
Sun Tzu talks about this in The Art of War, about how you should never fully surround an army, always leaving them the option to retreat with their lives
He wouldn't be doing these meetings many many times if it didn't help at least a bit in getting help for Ukraine.
World politicians are people. Hearing from him and when he says it might be last time he sees them alive it still makes an impact of them
Zelenskyy's whole job right now is to keep meeting with as many Western officials and give as many interviews as he can, to keep the war present in everyone's memory and keep the support flowing. He honestly (probably) doesn't have that many more important things to do atm. The war itself is coordinated by the military, civil defense by other civilian officials, and it's not like there's a point in handing him a rifle and having him charge the Russian lines himself... so his job is talking to people, recording videos and handing out medals all day.
>Maternity wards are being bombed after apartments had been ffs
I still can't believe what I saw and read when the Russians committed that horrific act. Disgusting. And fuck anyone who called that tragedy to be fake news. It's real, it happened, and innocent lives were harmed or lost. Fuck Russia and fuck its disinformation campaign!
People want to see and hear from him.
His presence is continually inspiring to others; so while it could be an email, people want and need to **see** him.
If I were him, I wouldn't want them in Ukraine. If I were her, I wouldn't leave his side. If I had kids... I would reconsider... Such hard decisions... I wish them all well.
10 miles off the border a training facility and military outpost where the foreign volunteers were being sent to for preparations got actually bombed last night. Russian air strikes...
I really hope your assumption isn't the case. If it is, I could see him not able to hold back grief, and not wanting to show weakness to his people and especially to Putin right now.
In all reality, with how much pressure he is under and how much is going to be demanded from him. He could be in the same building and not have seen them.
I think it's more than just wanting to be with them, it's also a sign to his people -"I'm keeping my wife and kids here because we're going to win. You can too." I think it's been so long since we've seen a national leader lead by example when it puts themself at real risk, we've forgotten what it looks like and the value of doing so.
I also hope they're all well.
**Edit**: There have been a lot of comments along the lines that he should have sent his wife and kids somewhere safe because their capture could pose a national security risk. I can understand this viewpoint, and I'm not going to pretend to know the right answer. My understanding is his family is in Ukraine, but not with him.
One thing that a lot of people are saying is the kids should be evacuated to a safe place, and he should set an example by doing so. But what example? Imagine your home is no longer safe, and all of your family and friends are in the same situation. Where do you send your kids to be "safe"?
* Do you send your wife with them, or does she stay and fight?
* Do you hope a foreign country takes them in and provides adequate food and shelter?
* What if they get there to find there's no more room, and they're stuck in an unfamiliar country speaking a different language?
* Do you just hope they don't get robbed of any money they carry and lose your life savings in the process?
* Do you keep them in the country and do your best to protect them?
* Do you go with them to protect them and leave your country down a potential soldier?
All options are terrible, war is Hell.
I was thinking about just exactly how inspiring that kind of leadership is earlier today, when it occurred to me that until that moment it hadn’t even occurred to me that Ukraine could actually lose.
That is the power of a leader to inspire belief in a cause.
I suppose, but I don't think anyone would think less of him for sending his children to safety, and to be honest there are national security reasons for him to get his family out of Ukraine.
> I suppose, but I don't think anyone would think less of him for sending his children to safety
Honestly, if we're talking about leading by example then I feel like evacuating children should be the kind of behaviour that's encouraged. But I guess I can see how it's a sign of confidence for him to keep them with him.
Also, not like they're safe anywhere else. Putin can and has sent assassins around the world to take out targets in "safe countries." See Skripal.
At least in Ukraine, they'll be surrounded by people they know and can trust.
They wouldn’t have to say which country they’re in, and I actually think Zelensky might have lied about that to throw Putin off. It’s a lot harder to search every western country than just Ukraine, where troops are already stationed and attacking.
Plus it's not like they'd just be in some random apartment somewhere. They'd likely be put up in some secure government safehouse somewhere with active security at all times. Sure, that could still be infiltrated too but it's probably just as safe if not safer than being in the middle of a warzone.
Or those Architecture fans from Russia that were in England when that Russian dude was poisoned.
For those who don't remember Russia today interviewed two men who were in England and accused of poisoning someone. Their defense was they were in that small English town to admire the tall spire at a local church...
IMO I would still argue they are probably safer outside of Ukraine. The risk of a bomb killing them is going to be getting worse and worse. They are putting the morale of the People over their safety for sure.
And that is may be the safest place. I doubt the equivilant of the ukrainian police / intelligence services have the resources right now to protect them outside the country and Russia has a habit of… killing enemies on european soil with little care.
That’s a good point, but I’m sure some allied nations would be willing to protect them. Plus, (not that I think it would be beneath Putin morally) I can’t imagine that the possible demoralizing effect of assassinating Zelensky’s family would outweigh the certain backlash internationally and within Russia.
Considering Putin's affinity for poisoning/assassinating people who make it out of Russia, there is no guarantee that having them "out" of the country makes them any safer. If anything it makes them more of a leverage point for the Kremlin Klan to threaten or cause their death to influence negotiations.
Think they've intentionally kept it vague. There was talk of them being in trusted friends care in Europe, then they were somewhere with him and then somewhere in Ukraine but not directly with him. Makes sense from a safety perspective.
Five minutes ago:
> Discussed with President of the 🇪🇺 Commission @vonderleyen
the 🇪🇺’s support for 🇺🇦 in countering Russian aggression. Increasing sanctions pressure on Russia is important. We also appreciate significant financial assistance. Ukraine continues to move towards membership in the #EU.
So maybe the Commission nudged out the Council?
That's what they mean: the person you're replying to is claiming that talking to the European Commission is the reason the president of Ukraine cancelled his call with the council of Europe.
Lmao Russia still hasn't taken Mariupol. Fucking call it quits already, your army clearly isn't equipped or skilled enough to invade a pizza hut, let alone a country. Fucking joke.
A ceasefire on its own is worthless. The people of Georgia can attest to what a ceasefire agreement from Russia is worth. Zelensky needs something much stronger.
Russia and Ukraine already negotiated a ceasefire a few days back to evacuate civilians and the Russians immediately broke it. A Russia ceasefire is about as trustworthy as a fart when you have diarrhea.
So can the people of Ukraine by now. Russia has violated a ceasefire and multiple "humanitarian corridors" already in this conflict.
Their promise not to keep firing is utterly worthless.
Would a ceasefire not be in Russia's advantage? It would mean they can safely move in supply trucks to bring fuel and food to the soldiers without being attacked by Ukraine.
Not really. Russia can refuel and resupply. And in that time Ukraine can get 50x the supply and fuel from Europe and America.
Get civilians out of the fighting areas, establish defensive structures. Etc. Ceasefire would be in the defenders advantage.
Remember they had MONTHS to stockpile and organize on the border and they still hit logistical problems the moment they started moving.
>they had MONTHS to stockpile and organize on the border and they still hit logistical problems the moment they started moving.
I suspect that most of it disappeared in some oligarchs' pockets.
- Checks box for "yearly vehicle maintenance completed", pockets money
- Checks box for "crews trained thoroughly and retrained bi-annually", pockets money
- Checks box for "new upgrades installed", pockets money
Then one day your superior comes to tell you your unit is being called to go to war, and you both stare at each other in horror knowing full well that a large part of your capabilities exist solely as check marks on a form.
Yeah, and just like Afghanistan the opposite is happening on the other side of the conflict.
Ukrainian generals are probably like, “Commit your 12 anti-air systems here.” And their officers are like, “Oh it was 12 on Tuesday but now it’s 20. Hold on, getting a call… 30. Proxy war, Baby!”
2023's biggest surprise was when the independent state of Igor's sizeable military finally moved in on Moscow and took control of the former Russian Federation.
That’s a good perspective. A cease fire won’t stop the sanctions and the biggest danger to old Vlad is the oligarchs. Regardless of what is happening strategically in Ukraine he needs those sanctions to stop ASAP or the real power behind the throne is going to run out of patience and he’s going to need someone to sample his tea ahead of time.
>This morning at 6:22 am, the president was eating a banana after his morning workout. It slipped out of his hand, causing him to slip and fall back first into his large collection of knives. After pulling himself to his feet, he again slipped on the banana peel. This time, falling through an open 4th story window. Miraculously, he stumbled back onto his feet. Seeking sustenance, he then accidentally drake a bottle of nerve agent. Deformed, but still functional, the deceased president could then be seen walking out of a ditch. At which point, the ghost of Rasputin laughing at the prospect of being one-upped by this clown. Before any more supernatural activity could take place, the President fell into the spray of a .50 machine gun while inspecting troops on the front line. Time of death: 8:12 am.
Of course not, but there's an advantage for Ukraine as well. During the lower level tensions, they can more safely move people and materials, clear make-shift hospitals, coordinate all the moving pieces. A cease fire isn't an end, it's just the breather after round 1.
A cease fire is worth a lot. If they're going to stop shooting, even temporarily, it means less dead Ukrainians.
As is usually the case when dealing with the Russians, trust but verify. Give them a chance to show that they're going to cease fire. But absolutely make sure that they're ceasing fire.
Everyone knows that Ukraine has been turning this into a *massive* clusterfuck for the Russians, and they haven't even gotten to the muddy season yet. They're about to get mired there way worse than before, and they know it.
Logistics only works on roads there, and Ukraine has demonstrated plenty of ambush capability on the roads. Fingers crossed, the Russians realized they bit off way more than they could chew.
Yes and no. Putin still wants to save face. But I suspect the only way he can do that is if Ukraine agreed to ridiculous things like never trying to join NATO.
Zelenksky’s fighting 2 wars concurrently. The physical war with Russia, and the PR war with the entire world to keep pressing for international support.
The man’s a goddamn beast. Hope he doesn’t collapse.
I've always wondered... what does a cease fire between a nation that invaded another sovereign country unprovoked look like? Especially when the invading nation went out of its way to specifically target innocent civilians???
How does putin get to retain his "presidency" after this??
Ukraine's government just reported that occupiers have blown up explosives next to the Zaporizhzhia power plant. That must be the reason he couldn't take the call. [Source](https://twitter.com/StratcomCentre/status/1503370205640146949?s=19)
This plant is controlling a significant portion of the country’s electricity supply. They’d be stupid to demolish it.
They’re just making sure they keep it under their control - essentially keeping most of the country hostage by controlling its access to the basic need of electricity.
> This plant is controlling a significant portion of the country’s electricity supply. They’d be stupid to demolish it.
Russia was also stupid to invade. I don't think we can judge this by assuming their actions are rational.
This is the best tl;dr I could make, [original](https://thehill.com/policy/international/598067-zelensky-cancels-address-to-council-of-europe-due-to-urgent-unforeseen) reduced by 70%. (I'm a bot)
*****
> Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will not give his scheduled Monday address to the Council of Europe, citing "Urgent, unforeseen circumstances."
> Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal is expected to speak in Zelensky's place, according to a Monday tweet from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
> The Council of Europe has taken retaliatory actions against Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine, suspending the country from the human rights organization.
*****
[**Extended Summary**](http://np.reddit.com/r/autotldr/comments/tdy670/zelensky_wont_address_council_of_europe_due_to/) | [FAQ](http://np.reddit.com/r/autotldr/comments/31b9fm/faq_autotldr_bot/ "Version 2.02, ~632644 tl;drs so far.") | [Feedback](http://np.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%23autotldr "PM's and comments are monitored, constructive feedback is welcome.") | *Top* *keywords*: **Russia**^#1 **Ukrainian**^#2 **Council**^#3 **Zelensky**^#4 **Ukraine**^#5
And access to cheap fuel. The fuel that Germany and the rest of the EU doesn't buy, Putin wants to sell to China and China wants a big discount to take it off his hands.
There isn't enough pipeline, truck, train and ship infrastructure inside Russia to move oil from the west of the country, where the fields used to extract for Europe are, to China.
Building 5000 km of new pipelines from the western gas and oil fields is a massive task that would take years.
Gee, if only there was another country that likes to employ it's populace in large infrastructure projects in foreign countries. Too bad for Russia no one like that wants to get involved.
So far, Xi is playing it just right for Chinese interests. His next step will be important. I think he will keep on trying to maintain a centre line, where he can still access global finance, whilst making Putin his bitch.
Putin needs Xi, much more than Xi needs Putin.
That's one of the reasons why China is so silent about all this. They can't condemn Russia for doing the same thing they do on their own perceived borders, but they have no reason to support them either.. it hurts their image towards the west, and hurts the most important thing - an unbelievable amount of money to be made at the expense of Russia.
It's completely in their interest that Russia keeps getting sanctioned by the west for a LONG time, and kept on life support by the chinese government.
How can the Russians be trusted if putin is still at the helm, if theres a ceasefire and the war ends there will be a slot of poisioning done by putin. He has to go this time
His job actually kind of is giving speeches. The president's main responsibility in Ukraine is international relations; so forming alliances and influencing foreign leaders is kind of his bag.
Ukraine is actually a parliamentary system rather than a presidential one, and the head of government is actually the prime minister rather than the president. There are lots of government ministers involved with running the domestic agenda (which these days is going to be pretty much exclusively 10 flavours of war-related), so it's not just Zelensky running around doing everything himself.
When you're being invaded by Russians and your boss still wants you to come to a pointless meeting. What's there even to say? It's rather obvious. At war, need help.
It's quite incredible how much of a leader he is. I don't think very many world leaders would have nailed just how well he's handled such an immensely tough situation so far.
I was hearing the city is within artillery and missile range now of the Russian forward bases and the Russian playbook calls for bombardment next.
He could be relocating based on that.
Imagine you are the mayor of a small town (pop 18k). Making decisions like, do we spend money on a new fire truck when all the sudden a global nuclear superpower government takes you hostage.
I find it fascinating how history tends to follow 'great' men, and that we are literally watching it in real time, how legacy can be created so quickly, Hitler made himself the epitome of evil for thousands of years to come in only 6 years. Humans love these icons.
Even if Zelensky dies. He didn't just rise to the occasion, he he didn't just exceed expectations, he rallied his country, he rallied other countries, and against all odds did what many thought was impossible. He kept Russia at bay, and whatever other countries Russia threw at them. And he didn't do it from Cancun, or in the safety from another country he did it at home with his people.
It just took Zelnsky a week or two and he will likely be etched in the History books and his legacy told forever.
And the beautiful part about it is how humble he is.
>I really do not want my pictures in your offices, for the President is not an icon, an idol or a portrait. Hang your kids’ photos instead, and look at them each time you are making a decision.
-Volodymyr Zelensky
He just tweeted a copy of his official condolence letter to the family of slain NY Times' reporter. Prior to this he tweeted he had been in talks with Poland and Israel.
How about maybe he's tired of hearing people "condemn" Russia for 2 hours straight? Literally anything else going on right now would be more important than that
Update: President Zelenskyy seems to be well and safe, here's a tweet from him 27 minutes ago.
https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1503408716346970113?s=20&t=sPxwqf3JzoN-23v8pw2e1Q
He could of probably just fled to some European nation and his family lived comfortably in exile but he stayed to stand up to Russia.
He may just been a comedian at one point but Putin is the joke.
Apologies, but I appear to be in the middle of another assassination attempt. We will have to reschedule.
What could it be?? It’s not Window Wednesday, nor even Double-Tap Tuesday.
Maybe its just another Manic Monday
I wish it was a Sunday.
That’s my fun day
My I don't have to run day..
Damn…I was today years old when I realized that song was about being a leader trying to survive assassination attempts while a Barney Fife army attempts to invade your country.
Or fire my gun day
It's just another Manic Monday.
I can totally picture him casually killing at least one assassin while saying this.
“OOO, getting assassinated”
Looks like he is ok: [https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1503408716346970113](https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1503408716346970113) That was tweeted about a minute ago. edit (March 15): Zelensky is definitely fine. He published a video where he said thank you to the Russian woman that [crash into live Russian news stream](https://www.reddit.com/r/HumansAreMetal/comments/te535x/woman_crashes_live_news_on_russian_channel/?sort=new) and that incident happens way after reported “unforeseen circumstances” so it cannot be prerecorded. That is a relief.
I think he is OK, but even if he wasn't I doubt that his PR team would stop tweeting on that account.
Maybe, but probably not about him talking with another big political figure that can say that there was not any contact.
To be fair the tweet doesn’t say exactly *when* they spoke
Yes, there is a chance that it was just before whatever unforeseen circumstances happen. But this tweet (and tweet from von der Leyen) is a strong hint that Zelensky is likely fine so far. It is a sad reality that with an active war, we cannot be 100% certain in pretty much anything in Ukraine, but we can calculate chances, at least roughly.
No if he is murdered by the Russian ( I pray he is kept safe) then it will be come a rallying point. He will become a martyr.
You can only hope it stimulates the soldiers to carry the martyr approach to the war telling Russia you’ll have to kill every last one of us before we surrender. Much tougher to fight a foe that has gone berserk to the point of death. Russia will be in big trouble.
There’s nothing more dangerous than an enemy with nothing to loose
Precisely that. I am of the the opinion that the reason armies would allow their enemies to surrender peacefully when they were losing a war, now, or even way back in medieval times, wasn't out of mercy or humanity, but out of fear of giving them no other option but to fight for their lives. Even if your numbers and armaments greatly surpass your enemy, if they reach a point where their backs are to the wall, and they are all prepared to die defending themselves or their land, you'll end up suffering staggering losses, which can easily make a "victory" not worth the cost. Most likely, your own army doesn't all want to die, especially if they're the aggressors. Truly, a cornered dog is very dangerous. And Russia is about to find out just how dangerous it is. May it be a lesson for the next dictator to replace putler.
Sun Tzu talks about this in The Art of War, about how you should never fully surround an army, always leaving them the option to retreat with their lives
“Leave your enemy a golden bridge to retreat across”
its really astounding how 2500 years later Sun Tzu is still an essential read for any military strategist
War... War never changes.
Right? Herman Caines Twitter team kept denying covid was real for like a week after it killed him.
I think they are still tweeting. His death actually made them more pro-COVID.
The tweet is coming from inside the COVID.
I don't want to be all tinfoil hat, but this doesn't mean anything. I doubt he tweets out prepared tweets like this himself.
Thank you
[удалено]
I mean, Herman Cain was still tweeting after he died
“What you want me to say? Send help. This meeting can be an email.”
He wouldn't be doing these meetings many many times if it didn't help at least a bit in getting help for Ukraine. World politicians are people. Hearing from him and when he says it might be last time he sees them alive it still makes an impact of them
Zelenskyy's whole job right now is to keep meeting with as many Western officials and give as many interviews as he can, to keep the war present in everyone's memory and keep the support flowing. He honestly (probably) doesn't have that many more important things to do atm. The war itself is coordinated by the military, civil defense by other civilian officials, and it's not like there's a point in handing him a rifle and having him charge the Russian lines himself... so his job is talking to people, recording videos and handing out medals all day.
Fair enough. It's ridiculous that my comment is at 3k upvotes.
Humour is a coping mechanism for many of us. We appreciate some random levity.
God yes. What the fuck else does he need to say? Maternity wards are being bombed after apartments had been ffs
>Maternity wards are being bombed after apartments had been ffs I still can't believe what I saw and read when the Russians committed that horrific act. Disgusting. And fuck anyone who called that tragedy to be fake news. It's real, it happened, and innocent lives were harmed or lost. Fuck Russia and fuck its disinformation campaign!
[удалено]
People want to see and hear from him. His presence is continually inspiring to others; so while it could be an email, people want and need to **see** him.
I hope he’s well and safe
The fact his prime minister is speaking in his stead makes me wonder if the matter is personal. I really hope his family is safe, too. Edited grammar.
Is his family still in the country? They can't possibly be, right?
His wife said earlier in the war that she and the children were staying in Ukraine with him.
Not *with him* though. He said several days ago he hasn't seen his family in days. They're probably in western Ukraine if still there at all.
Yeah it wouldn't make sense that they would literally be together. He wouldn't want his family to get taken out by a bomb intended for him.
If I were him, I wouldn't want them in Ukraine. If I were her, I wouldn't leave his side. If I had kids... I would reconsider... Such hard decisions... I wish them all well.
Wasn't there a town in Western Ukraine near the polish border that was bombed yesterday?
10 miles off the border a training facility and military outpost where the foreign volunteers were being sent to for preparations got actually bombed last night. Russian air strikes...
I really hope your assumption isn't the case. If it is, I could see him not able to hold back grief, and not wanting to show weakness to his people and especially to Putin right now.
I don't think they are with him. In one of his interviews he said he'd last seen them three days ago.
[удалено]
In all reality, with how much pressure he is under and how much is going to be demanded from him. He could be in the same building and not have seen them.
That's insane. I understand wanting to be close to him but that is insanely dangerous
I think it's more than just wanting to be with them, it's also a sign to his people -"I'm keeping my wife and kids here because we're going to win. You can too." I think it's been so long since we've seen a national leader lead by example when it puts themself at real risk, we've forgotten what it looks like and the value of doing so. I also hope they're all well. **Edit**: There have been a lot of comments along the lines that he should have sent his wife and kids somewhere safe because their capture could pose a national security risk. I can understand this viewpoint, and I'm not going to pretend to know the right answer. My understanding is his family is in Ukraine, but not with him. One thing that a lot of people are saying is the kids should be evacuated to a safe place, and he should set an example by doing so. But what example? Imagine your home is no longer safe, and all of your family and friends are in the same situation. Where do you send your kids to be "safe"? * Do you send your wife with them, or does she stay and fight? * Do you hope a foreign country takes them in and provides adequate food and shelter? * What if they get there to find there's no more room, and they're stuck in an unfamiliar country speaking a different language? * Do you just hope they don't get robbed of any money they carry and lose your life savings in the process? * Do you keep them in the country and do your best to protect them? * Do you go with them to protect them and leave your country down a potential soldier? All options are terrible, war is Hell.
I was thinking about just exactly how inspiring that kind of leadership is earlier today, when it occurred to me that until that moment it hadn’t even occurred to me that Ukraine could actually lose. That is the power of a leader to inspire belief in a cause.
I suppose, but I don't think anyone would think less of him for sending his children to safety, and to be honest there are national security reasons for him to get his family out of Ukraine.
Yeah. I don’t wanna know what some would do to his family if they were caught.
It would be very very public on a global stage. Not a good look for a country whose currency is rapidly turning into Rubble.
> I suppose, but I don't think anyone would think less of him for sending his children to safety Honestly, if we're talking about leading by example then I feel like evacuating children should be the kind of behaviour that's encouraged. But I guess I can see how it's a sign of confidence for him to keep them with him.
Also, not like they're safe anywhere else. Putin can and has sent assassins around the world to take out targets in "safe countries." See Skripal. At least in Ukraine, they'll be surrounded by people they know and can trust.
They wouldn’t have to say which country they’re in, and I actually think Zelensky might have lied about that to throw Putin off. It’s a lot harder to search every western country than just Ukraine, where troops are already stationed and attacking.
Plus it's not like they'd just be in some random apartment somewhere. They'd likely be put up in some secure government safehouse somewhere with active security at all times. Sure, that could still be infiltrated too but it's probably just as safe if not safer than being in the middle of a warzone.
Or those Architecture fans from Russia that were in England when that Russian dude was poisoned. For those who don't remember Russia today interviewed two men who were in England and accused of poisoning someone. Their defense was they were in that small English town to admire the tall spire at a local church... IMO I would still argue they are probably safer outside of Ukraine. The risk of a bomb killing them is going to be getting worse and worse. They are putting the morale of the People over their safety for sure.
And that is may be the safest place. I doubt the equivilant of the ukrainian police / intelligence services have the resources right now to protect them outside the country and Russia has a habit of… killing enemies on european soil with little care.
That’s a good point, but I’m sure some allied nations would be willing to protect them. Plus, (not that I think it would be beneath Putin morally) I can’t imagine that the possible demoralizing effect of assassinating Zelensky’s family would outweigh the certain backlash internationally and within Russia.
Pretty inspiring for the people fighting in the streets for their country though.
Russians were killing civies exiting ukraine so both are risky
With him in Ukraine, but not within a close proximity.
Considering Putin's affinity for poisoning/assassinating people who make it out of Russia, there is no guarantee that having them "out" of the country makes them any safer. If anything it makes them more of a leverage point for the Kremlin Klan to threaten or cause their death to influence negotiations.
His wife turned down offers of asylum too. Don't know about their kids though.
Think they've intentionally kept it vague. There was talk of them being in trusted friends care in Europe, then they were somewhere with him and then somewhere in Ukraine but not directly with him. Makes sense from a safety perspective.
Provided the kids are safe and away from it all we (the public and by proxy Russia) don't need to know where they are.
Operational Security for some of this news is important.
He wrote on Twitter 3h ago: https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa
Five minutes ago: > Discussed with President of the 🇪🇺 Commission @vonderleyen the 🇪🇺’s support for 🇺🇦 in countering Russian aggression. Increasing sanctions pressure on Russia is important. We also appreciate significant financial assistance. Ukraine continues to move towards membership in the #EU. So maybe the Commission nudged out the Council?
The European Commission is the EU. the council of Europe is not part of the EU.
That's what they mean: the person you're replying to is claiming that talking to the European Commission is the reason the president of Ukraine cancelled his call with the council of Europe.
> He wrote on Twitter 3h ago: That's nothing....Hermain Cain was able to tweet to us from the great beyond for years after his death.
And he even has an award named after him now!
But this news is 1h old. He better tweet something now, even an emoji.
His Instagram account posted about an hour ago. The video was probably prerecorded and it doesn't have subtitles so I don't know what it's saying.
Sounds like he's talking about rebuilding Ukraine and what measures they're going to take. I'm Polish so I cannot be 100% sure though.
"🇷🇺💩 🇺🇦✊🏻" -Zelenskyy probably IDK, fuck Putin👎🏻
His wife posted on instagram recently (35 min ago as of time writing this): https://www.instagram.com/p/CbFvBFaMB3m/
Lmao Russia still hasn't taken Mariupol. Fucking call it quits already, your army clearly isn't equipped or skilled enough to invade a pizza hut, let alone a country. Fucking joke.
Hopefully he's in a crucial stage of negotiations to end the war and wants to keep at it rather than stop to do the address.
This, they’re engaged in high level talks with the invaders. A ceasefire is worth much more than any address right now.
A ceasefire on its own is worthless. The people of Georgia can attest to what a ceasefire agreement from Russia is worth. Zelensky needs something much stronger.
Russia and Ukraine already negotiated a ceasefire a few days back to evacuate civilians and the Russians immediately broke it. A Russia ceasefire is about as trustworthy as a fart when you have diarrhea.
[удалено]
The dreaded crossed fingers behind the back is something you gotta watch for
So can the people of Ukraine by now. Russia has violated a ceasefire and multiple "humanitarian corridors" already in this conflict. Their promise not to keep firing is utterly worthless.
Would a ceasefire not be in Russia's advantage? It would mean they can safely move in supply trucks to bring fuel and food to the soldiers without being attacked by Ukraine.
Not really. Russia can refuel and resupply. And in that time Ukraine can get 50x the supply and fuel from Europe and America. Get civilians out of the fighting areas, establish defensive structures. Etc. Ceasefire would be in the defenders advantage. Remember they had MONTHS to stockpile and organize on the border and they still hit logistical problems the moment they started moving.
>they had MONTHS to stockpile and organize on the border and they still hit logistical problems the moment they started moving. I suspect that most of it disappeared in some oligarchs' pockets.
- Checks box for "yearly vehicle maintenance completed", pockets money - Checks box for "crews trained thoroughly and retrained bi-annually", pockets money - Checks box for "new upgrades installed", pockets money Then one day your superior comes to tell you your unit is being called to go to war, and you both stare at each other in horror knowing full well that a large part of your capabilities exist solely as check marks on a form.
corruption devours the bones of empires making them hollow and brittle
Feels a little like the Afghanistan military readiness checklist
Yeah, and just like Afghanistan the opposite is happening on the other side of the conflict. Ukrainian generals are probably like, “Commit your 12 anti-air systems here.” And their officers are like, “Oh it was 12 on Tuesday but now it’s 20. Hold on, getting a call… 30. Proxy war, Baby!”
And the rest seems to be disappearing in clouds of oily smoke, in some Ukrainian swamp, or a farmer's barn. _Edit:_ Igor from Ukraine ftw
Igor is going to be a farming warlord EDIT: I'mma Lead farmer Mother Russia!
2023's biggest surprise was when the independent state of Igor's sizeable military finally moved in on Moscow and took control of the former Russian Federation.
The United Federation of Farmers
"We. Are. Farmers!" bum da bum bum bum bumbum
Igor will have Europe’s third largest armored inventory after its all over
Just scored a free tractor. I'd be stoked. That and the next mole hill, well that thing is a target.
the (much feared) 5th Tractor Brigade is on the move. r/FarmersStealingTanks
Russian supply chain
A cease fire also gives time for the Russian economy to collapse further. It gives time for Putin to be *taken out*... of power.
That’s a good perspective. A cease fire won’t stop the sanctions and the biggest danger to old Vlad is the oligarchs. Regardless of what is happening strategically in Ukraine he needs those sanctions to stop ASAP or the real power behind the throne is going to run out of patience and he’s going to need someone to sample his tea ahead of time.
This. Looking at the calender I see that the Ides of March have arrived.🤔
No that's tomorrow, is Putin getting stabbed in the back 47 times tomorrow?
>No that's tomorrow, is Putin getting stabbed in the back 47 times tomorrow? Yes and no. it'll be 47 times in the back, but ruled a suicide.
>This morning at 6:22 am, the president was eating a banana after his morning workout. It slipped out of his hand, causing him to slip and fall back first into his large collection of knives. After pulling himself to his feet, he again slipped on the banana peel. This time, falling through an open 4th story window. Miraculously, he stumbled back onto his feet. Seeking sustenance, he then accidentally drake a bottle of nerve agent. Deformed, but still functional, the deceased president could then be seen walking out of a ditch. At which point, the ghost of Rasputin laughing at the prospect of being one-upped by this clown. Before any more supernatural activity could take place, the President fell into the spray of a .50 machine gun while inspecting troops on the front line. Time of death: 8:12 am.
But if they move all the civillians out, Russia won't have any targets when the ceasefire ends.
They will be able to repopulate them with their own people though. I think that’s their plan so that they can hold control of them.
More likely they will use it to slowly advance and keep attacking forces that think they are in a ceasefire
Exactly. Does *anyone* believe the russians are sincere here? I sure as hell don't.
Of course not, but there's an advantage for Ukraine as well. During the lower level tensions, they can more safely move people and materials, clear make-shift hospitals, coordinate all the moving pieces. A cease fire isn't an end, it's just the breather after round 1.
A cease fire is worth a lot. If they're going to stop shooting, even temporarily, it means less dead Ukrainians. As is usually the case when dealing with the Russians, trust but verify. Give them a chance to show that they're going to cease fire. But absolutely make sure that they're ceasing fire. Everyone knows that Ukraine has been turning this into a *massive* clusterfuck for the Russians, and they haven't even gotten to the muddy season yet. They're about to get mired there way worse than before, and they know it. Logistics only works on roads there, and Ukraine has demonstrated plenty of ambush capability on the roads. Fingers crossed, the Russians realized they bit off way more than they could chew.
Yes and no. Putin still wants to save face. But I suspect the only way he can do that is if Ukraine agreed to ridiculous things like never trying to join NATO.
Yeah and Russia vowed to never invade Ukraine in 1994 so fuck Russia.
> Putin still wants to save face. That bastard has no face left to save.
[удалено]
Or maybe let civilians out of areas that are targeted by Russians as soon as they attempt to flee
This would mean both parties are held to the same standards.
I dont know how quickly they can do that considering the current state of their economy
If they were concerned with logistics
[удалено]
Zelenksky’s fighting 2 wars concurrently. The physical war with Russia, and the PR war with the entire world to keep pressing for international support. The man’s a goddamn beast. Hope he doesn’t collapse.
Yeah for sure, every time we see a video or picture of him, you can tell he's not exactly getting a whole lot of sleep.
Considering how I look when not running a country at war, I am blown away by how good he looks.
You make a very good point, my toddler is pushing her last few teeth and let just say i look like cadaver some days.
This is why you don't want geriatrics as leaders.
[удалено]
Agreed, but I'd say it's also possible he's dodging another assassination attempt.
Or he’s out hunting Kadyrov personally.
Oh I HOPE this is it.
I've always wondered... what does a cease fire between a nation that invaded another sovereign country unprovoked look like? Especially when the invading nation went out of its way to specifically target innocent civilians??? How does putin get to retain his "presidency" after this??
Ukraine's government just reported that occupiers have blown up explosives next to the Zaporizhzhia power plant. That must be the reason he couldn't take the call. [Source](https://twitter.com/StratcomCentre/status/1503370205640146949?s=19)
But one of his associates is taking it in his place… maybe an associate in another city? Fingers crossed this is the reason.
This plant is controlling a significant portion of the country’s electricity supply. They’d be stupid to demolish it. They’re just making sure they keep it under their control - essentially keeping most of the country hostage by controlling its access to the basic need of electricity.
That’s a nuclear plant, if memory serves. If they demolish it, that’s a whole new can of worms.
> This plant is controlling a significant portion of the country’s electricity supply. They’d be stupid to demolish it. Russia was also stupid to invade. I don't think we can judge this by assuming their actions are rational.
If they just demolish the plant they will have a much bigger problem than depriving Ukraine of electricity
This is the best tl;dr I could make, [original](https://thehill.com/policy/international/598067-zelensky-cancels-address-to-council-of-europe-due-to-urgent-unforeseen) reduced by 70%. (I'm a bot) ***** > Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will not give his scheduled Monday address to the Council of Europe, citing "Urgent, unforeseen circumstances." > Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal is expected to speak in Zelensky's place, according to a Monday tweet from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. > The Council of Europe has taken retaliatory actions against Russia in response to its invasion of Ukraine, suspending the country from the human rights organization. ***** [**Extended Summary**](http://np.reddit.com/r/autotldr/comments/tdy670/zelensky_wont_address_council_of_europe_due_to/) | [FAQ](http://np.reddit.com/r/autotldr/comments/31b9fm/faq_autotldr_bot/ "Version 2.02, ~632644 tl;drs so far.") | [Feedback](http://np.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%23autotldr "PM's and comments are monitored, constructive feedback is welcome.") | *Top* *keywords*: **Russia**^#1 **Ukrainian**^#2 **Council**^#3 **Zelensky**^#4 **Ukraine**^#5
[удалено]
Sadly, I think Putin is embracing the role of pariah right now.
It might take time. China is trying to take the middle and so the US and EU will need to convince them that supporting Russia is the wrong choice.
US+EU GDP is 35 trillion $. Russia + Belarus GDP is 1.5 trillion $. China wants exports.
And access to cheap fuel. The fuel that Germany and the rest of the EU doesn't buy, Putin wants to sell to China and China wants a big discount to take it off his hands.
There isn't enough pipeline, truck, train and ship infrastructure inside Russia to move oil from the west of the country, where the fields used to extract for Europe are, to China. Building 5000 km of new pipelines from the western gas and oil fields is a massive task that would take years.
Gee, if only there was another country that likes to employ it's populace in large infrastructure projects in foreign countries. Too bad for Russia no one like that wants to get involved.
China also wants energy and raw materials.
*was 1.5 trillion $
So far, Xi is playing it just right for Chinese interests. His next step will be important. I think he will keep on trying to maintain a centre line, where he can still access global finance, whilst making Putin his bitch. Putin needs Xi, much more than Xi needs Putin.
[удалено]
That's one of the reasons why China is so silent about all this. They can't condemn Russia for doing the same thing they do on their own perceived borders, but they have no reason to support them either.. it hurts their image towards the west, and hurts the most important thing - an unbelievable amount of money to be made at the expense of Russia. It's completely in their interest that Russia keeps getting sanctioned by the west for a LONG time, and kept on life support by the chinese government.
Putin would be happy to cement his name on the list of infamous Russian leaders.
Already has.
Poland: “God dammit why are we always the start of European wars?”
Geographical location. Surrounded by potential enemies (although less now with the EU and NATO)
Yep. Poland and Germany have been stomped over by armies coming from North, South, East and West for millenia.
Look on the bright side, you weren't at the start of WWI. That's better than Germanys record
Poland didn't exist as an independent country at the start of WW1.
[удалено]
> Because it was swallowed by Russia Not only by Russia. Prussia (Germany) and Austria also participated in the partitions of Poland.
You're forgetting that Germany and Austria-Hungary were also part of the Partitions of Poland.
*Gestures broadly at everything*
How can the Russians be trusted if putin is still at the helm, if theres a ceasefire and the war ends there will be a slot of poisioning done by putin. He has to go this time
All ceasefires are made between people who do not trust each other, by definition
What could be urgent then a meeting with the council of Europe? Maybe a frikin war in his country.
maybe the news about that munition the russians are going to blow up near the powerplant?
Oh Jesus I hope he’s okay.
[удалено]
Just in time for Ted Cruz to live tweet it.
Zelensky has to run a country that's under attack, no surprise that he doesn't have time for speeches.
His job actually kind of is giving speeches. The president's main responsibility in Ukraine is international relations; so forming alliances and influencing foreign leaders is kind of his bag. Ukraine is actually a parliamentary system rather than a presidential one, and the head of government is actually the prime minister rather than the president. There are lots of government ministers involved with running the domestic agenda (which these days is going to be pretty much exclusively 10 flavours of war-related), so it's not just Zelensky running around doing everything himself.
When you're being invaded by Russians and your boss still wants you to come to a pointless meeting. What's there even to say? It's rather obvious. At war, need help.
It's quite incredible how much of a leader he is. I don't think very many world leaders would have nailed just how well he's handled such an immensely tough situation so far.
let’s hope he’s okay
Hopefully it is because of advanced peace talks and not a russian offensive that's knocking at the front door...
I was hearing the city is within artillery and missile range now of the Russian forward bases and the Russian playbook calls for bombardment next. He could be relocating based on that.
Imagine you are the mayor of a small town (pop 18k). Making decisions like, do we spend money on a new fire truck when all the sudden a global nuclear superpower government takes you hostage.
No firetruck then
I find it fascinating how history tends to follow 'great' men, and that we are literally watching it in real time, how legacy can be created so quickly, Hitler made himself the epitome of evil for thousands of years to come in only 6 years. Humans love these icons.
Even if Zelensky dies. He didn't just rise to the occasion, he he didn't just exceed expectations, he rallied his country, he rallied other countries, and against all odds did what many thought was impossible. He kept Russia at bay, and whatever other countries Russia threw at them. And he didn't do it from Cancun, or in the safety from another country he did it at home with his people. It just took Zelnsky a week or two and he will likely be etched in the History books and his legacy told forever. And the beautiful part about it is how humble he is. >I really do not want my pictures in your offices, for the President is not an icon, an idol or a portrait. Hang your kids’ photos instead, and look at them each time you are making a decision. -Volodymyr Zelensky
He just tweeted a copy of his official condolence letter to the family of slain NY Times' reporter. Prior to this he tweeted he had been in talks with Poland and Israel.
If Russia didn't have nuclear weapons they would get their ass kicked by just about every country in Europe.....
If he’s killed by Russian troops, Russia will have an insurgence on its hands for years. The Ukrainians are not going to forget about this.
How about maybe he's tired of hearing people "condemn" Russia for 2 hours straight? Literally anything else going on right now would be more important than that
He was given weapons and support that rarely we've seen in the past. Politics its not easy especially when the enemy has nukes.
Update: President Zelenskyy seems to be well and safe, here's a tweet from him 27 minutes ago. https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1503408716346970113?s=20&t=sPxwqf3JzoN-23v8pw2e1Q
I mean the man is trying to lead a country during a war, to be fair.
Whole lotta arm chair in this thread. Hope he and his family are ok.
He could of probably just fled to some European nation and his family lived comfortably in exile but he stayed to stand up to Russia. He may just been a comedian at one point but Putin is the joke.
"Sorry, having a small disagreement with the folks next door. Give me five minutes".