Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has made an impassioned appeal to his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to hold talks with him. Zelensky’s appeal came as Russian forces continue to bombard and lay seize on key Ukrainian cities.
In a video message, Zelensky can be heard asking Russians to withdraw from Ukraine. Interestingly, a few days back, he had branded Russia a terrorist state.
Now inviting the Russian President to the negotiating table, he said, “I don’t bite. I’m a normal bloke. Sit down with me and talk. What are you afraid of? We aren’t threatening anyone, we’re not terrorists, we aren’t seizing banks and seizing foreign land.”
“You don’t want to leave now? Then sit down with me at the negotiation table. I’m available. Sit. Just not 30 meters away like with Macron or Scholz etc. I am your neighbor. You don’t need to keep me 30 meters away” Zelensky said further.
Meanwhile, Russia denied that his troops are killing civilians or targeting cities and instead accused Ukrainian soldiers of holding people hostage and hiding their military equipment in civilian areas.
Earlier today, Putin branded Ukrainian soldiers “extreme gangsters”, who he claimed were using civilians and foreigners stranded in Ukraine as human shields.
The Russian President also hailed his soldiers as heroes who are fighting to save innocent lives and said his invasion is going exactly to plan and schedule, reported Mail Online terming it to be a “stunning act of hypocrisy and outright denial”.
The Indian government has meanwhile issued an advisory to its Indians stranded in Ukraine asking them to be vigilant, not step outside except during extreme necessity and cooperate with authorities.