Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky said 50 children have been killed over two weeks of brutal fighting during an historic address to parliament.
He spoke to the House of Commons over video-link from the base in Kyiv he is using to coordinate his country’s resistance to Vladimir Putin’s illegal invasion.
Tomorrow will mark a fortnight since a coordinated series of air strikes across Ukraine heralded the beginning of a full-scale attack which shows no signs of abating.
His address comes amid continued efforts to isolate the Kremlin economically and diplomatically, including new announcements from the UK, US and EU on reducing imports of Russian energy products.
The first-of-its-kind speech in parliament by Mr Zelensky also comes as anger grows at the British government’s slowness to open asylum routes for Ukrainians fleeing the conflict.
MPs and Lords listened to the address in Ukrainian through headsets and greeted Mr Zelensky with rapturous applause.
Vadym Prystaiko, Ukraine’s ambassador to London, was also present in the chamber to listen to the president, the first to speak live to the British parliament over video.
Mr Zelensky gave an address to the European Parliament last week during which he reiterated his calls for the West to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine.
Boris Johnson – who speaks to his Ukrainian counterpart on a regular basis – has repeatedly rejected this approach along with other leaders from Nato countries on the grounds it would likely lead to direct confrontation with Russia.
On Monday evening, Mr Johnson spoke with US president Joe Biden, French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Olaf Scholz, with the four leaders vowing to ‘continue to apply pressure on Russia to isolate Putin’.
Mr Zelensky’s extraordinary rise in the face of Russian aggression has seen his transformation from political outsider to heroic pro-democracy symbol.
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Until 2019, he was barely known outside Ukraine, where he made his name as an actor, including playing a fictional president in a satirical sitcom.
He was elected on a populist anti-corruption tickets less than three years ago and vowed to try and normalise relations with Moscow.
Instead, the 44-year-old father-of-two has found himself leading a war effort from a capital city some analysts fear could soon be surrounded by Kremlin forces.
MORE : UN worker’s tears on Ukraine border as refugee flow hits 2,000,000
Despite officials close to Mr Putin attempting to spread false rumours he had fled, Mr Zelensky has defiantly remained in Kyiv.
He has taunted his enemies by posting a series of videos online, showing him in the presidential palace and even walking the city’s streets.
In his latest dispatch – in which he even mustered a wink to the camera – he warned the Kremlin that he is ‘not hiding’ and ‘not afraid of anyone’.
He boldly declared he intends to remain in Kyiv ‘as long as necessary’ and confirmed his team is with him.
Mr Zelensky’ is reportedly being targeted by pro-Moscow forces who have been ordered to assassinate him and other government figures.
He has previously acknowledged that he is Mr Putin’s ‘number one target’ and Western intelligence agencies have warned key figures associated with the government could be executed if Ukraine’s defence fails.
Plots to infiltrate the heavily-fortified heart of the capital have been foiled on a number of occasions, with one source claiming anti-war elements within Russia’s secret service have tipped off Ukrainian leadership.
Elite Chechen forces handpicked from the personal force of the republic’s leader were repotedly wiped out during one such attempt.
Mercenaries operating under the auspices of the Wagner Group, a private army with close ties to the Kremlin, are said to be embedded in Kyiv but have been unable to get near to the president.
Russia-Ukraine war: Everything you need to know
Since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine began on February 24, the country has suffered widespread damages and loss of life amid a major bombing campaign.
An estimated 1.5 million refugees have fled Ukraine, as cities face shortages of food, water, heat, and medicine.
Countries have retaliated by imposing sanctions on Russia, with individual companies boycotting Russian products.
This has led to Russian President Vladimir Putin publishing a list of 43 ‘unfriendly countries’ who face economic restrictions for their sanctions.
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