Zelensky warns Russian people for their ‘cowardly silence’ as Putin claims battlefield success
KYIV, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday condemned the “cowardly silence” of the Russian people as the death toll in a missile attack on a tower block in the eastern city of Dnipro reached 30.
In his evening address, Zelensky said Ukraine had received many messages of sympathy from around the world in the wake of Saturday’s attack.
Switching to Russian, he said he wanted to address those Russians “who still cannot utter a few words of condemnation of this horror …
Zelensky said, “Your cowardly silence, your attempts to ‘wait out’ what is happening will only end with the fact that one day the same terrorists will come for you.”
The Ukrainian leader said a 15-year-old girl was among the victims of the missile strike and two children were reportedly orphaned.
He said rescuers were still searching the rubble for the 30 missing.
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Fighting continues in the eastern Donetsk region, where Russian forces claim to have captured Soledar, despite denials from Ukraine.
In Moscow, President Vladimir Putin said the Russian military operation in Ukraine had gained positive momentum, and he expected his troops to score more victories after Russia claimed control of the eastern Ukrainian salt mining town of Soledar.
Russia said Friday that its forces had taken control of Soledar, a rare success for Moscow after months of war.
“The dynamic is positive,” Putin told Rossiya 1 state TV when asked about taking on Soldier. “Everything is developing within the framework of the plan of the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff. And I hope that our fighters will delight us even more with the results of their battles.
Putin now views the war in Ukraine as an existential battle with an aggressive and arrogant West, and has said Russia will use all available means to defend itself and its people against any aggressor.
A regional governor in Ukraine said on Saturday that Ukrainian forces were still struggling to retain control of Soledar.
The Washington-based Institute for the Study of War said it was told by Russian President Vladimir Putin that the military campaign in Ukraine had gained positive momentum, and that he expected that after Russia claimed control of an eastern Ukrainian salt mining town. His soldiers would win more victories. Soledar’s.
Russia said Friday that its forces had taken control of Soledar, a rare success for Moscow after months of war.
“The dynamic is positive,” Putin told Rossiya 1 state TV when asked about taking on Soldier. “Everything is developing within the framework of the plan of the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff. And I hope that our fighters will delight us even more with the results of their battles.
Although the West has imposed unprecedented sanctions on Russia because of the war, the economy of the world’s biggest producer of natural resources has shown resilience. Putin says Russia is now turning away from the West and will trade with Asian powers such as China and India.
“The state of the economy is stable, much better than not only what our detractors predicted, but also what we predicted,” he said.