British Prime Minister Boris Johnson walked through the streets of Kyiv with Ukrainian Pres. Zelenskyy during a trip to the country, visiting the Monument of the Heavenly Hundred and speaking with locals. https://abcn.ws/37xqDJ4
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson visits Kyiv
- Thread starter MASTERBAKER
- Start date
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson walked through the streets of Kyiv with Ukrainian Pres. Zelenskyy during a trip to the country, visiting the Monument of the Heavenly Hundred and speaking with locals. https://abcn.ws/37xqDJ4
Boris Johnson makes secret trip to Kyiv to show ‘unwavering support’
By
Jon Levine and
Mary Kay Linge
April 9, 2022 12:12pm
Updated
Boris Johnson: UK to send 120 armoured vehicles to Ukraine
0:12
/
0:50
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson traveled secretly to Kyiv on Saturday for a surprise meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to show his “unwavering support” — as European leaders stepped up their own backing of the embattled country amid continued fighting with Russian forces.
“Welcome to Kyiv, my friend!” Zelensky said as he warmly greeted Johnson outside the capital’s Mariinskyi Palace.
The news of Johnson’s arrival was broken in a tweet ffrom the Ukrainian Embassy to Britain that showed the two leaders conferring in an ornately decorated room with a simple caption: “Surprise,” along with a winking emoji.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson shake hands before a meeting.REUTERS
Emergency workers carry debris from a multi-story building destroyed in a Russian air raid.AP
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during an interview with the Associated Press in his office in Kyiv, Ukraine on April 9, 2022.AP
Later, Zelensky guided Johnson on a tour of the city’s deserted streets, pointing out sandbagged windows and a somber memorial wall paying tribute to a few of the thousands of Ukrainians killed during weeks of resistance against Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion.
“In the last few weeks the world has found new heroes,” Johnson said as the two gave a joint press statement. “The Ukrainians have shown the courage of a lion … but you, Volodymyr, have given the roar of that lion.”
Zelensky used the visit to continue his call for tighter sanctions on Russia.
“It’s time to impose a complete embargo on Russian energy resources,” he said. “We have to put even more pressure on the Russian Federation.”
But he also declared that he still seeks a peaceful end to the war, despite the brutal Russian attacks on civilians.
Zelensky warmly greeted Johnson to Ukraine as the Russians continue their invasion of the country.AP
A Ukrainian missile is seen inside a destroyed building that was used as a temporary base by the Russian army.REUTERS
Locals get goods during a food distribution by the Ukrainian army.REUTERS
The aftermath of a Russian missile attack on Kramatorsk railway station in the Donetsk region.Office of the President of Ukrai
“No one wants to negotiate with a person or people who tortured this nation … as a man, as a father, I understand this very well,” he said in an interview with the Associated Press. “But we don’t want to lose opportunities, if we have them, for a diplomatic solution.”
While Johnson was in Kyiv, the British government announced new plans to send anti-ship missile systems and 120 armored vehicles to Ukraine as part of a $130 million shipment of high-grade military equipment.
“It is because of President Zelensky’s resolute leadership and the invincible heroism and courage of the Ukrainian people that Putin’s monstrous aims are being thwarted,” Johnson said. “The UK stands unwaveringly with them in this fight, and we are in it for the long run.”
Children lay down on luggages as families wait to board a train at Kramatorsk central station.AFP via Getty Images
Austria’s Chancellor Karl Nehammer also came to Kyiv for a separate meeting with Zelensky on Saturday, one day after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made her own pilgrimage to the Ukrainian capital – visits made possible by Russia’s recent retreat from the area around the nation’s political center.
In other developments Saturday:
“There are no words for the horror I’ve seen in Bucha, the ugly face of Putin’s army terrorizing people,” she said, a day after viewing a mass grave in the decimated town.
Zelensky, appearing via video link, demanded the prosecution of Russian soldiers and commanders for war crimes.
“Ukrainian courage has already united the whole democratic world,” he said. “But I would like Ukrainian courage to be shared by everyone in the world.”
A woman holds a child as families wait to board a train at Kramatorsk central station.AFP via Getty Images
Meanwhile, in eastern Ukraine, the governor of the Luhansk region urged residents to flee as fierce Russian bombardment of civilian targets continued.
“They (Russia) are amassing forces for an offensive and we see the number of shelling has increased,” Gov. Serhiy Gaidai said Saturday in televised remarks.
Gaidai reported attacks on the towns of Rubizhne, Popasna and Hirske – as well as a Russian hit on a storage tank holding “remnants” of nitric acid.
The Ukrainian government set up 10 humanitarian corridors meant to guide refugees to safety in the western part of the country, Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereschuk wrote on her Telegram account.
A woman cries as she tries to find a body of her son among debris of a residential building destroyed during Russia’s invasion.REUTERS
Invading Russian forces have stepped up attacks along strategic points in the country’s east and south in the wake of their withdrawal from areas near Kiev and more central regions. The United States said tens of thousands of Russian troops would likely descend on eastern Ukraine this week.
The strategically important port city of Mariupol, 175 miles south of Luhansk, has been declared a humanitarian disaster by the Red Cross after weeks of relentless shelling left its 450,000 residents without food, water, or medical supplies – with little hope of evacuation.
The few who have managed to escape bring tales of horror.
A car burns as smoke from the fire rises after the strike at the Kramatorsk railway station.via REUTERS
When desperately thirsty citizens gathered at water tanks to fill bottles, photojournalist Sergei Vaganov told the Times of London, a hail of Russian missiles rained down on them.
“I saw those who survived the bombs getting back on their feet, taking their water and walking over dead bodies back to their homes,” he said.
“When the world sees what happened in Mariupol, it will be Bucha multiplied by ten,” said Anna, a doctor at Mariupol’s city hospital. “It will be Bucha multiplied by a hundred, by a thousand.”
The call to flee Luhansk came hours after a Russian rocket attack at a railway station in the nearby city of Kramatorsk, which left at least least 52 people dead. The station was frequently crowded and served as a hub for those looking to flee westward.
US officials believe the Russians used a short range SS-21 Scarab ballistic missile to carry out the attack.
Zelensky blasted the strike as “another war crime” late Friday and called for a robust international response.
“Like the massacre in Bucha, the missile strike on Kramatorsk must be one of the charges at the tribunal, which is bound to happen,” he said.
Zelensky showed Johnson Kyiv’s deserted streets.AP
Russian officials have denied responsibility for the attack and instead have said it was the Ukrainians who fired on their own people to use their deaths as a propaganda tool.
“We are not buying the denial by the Russians that they weren’t responsible,” scoffed one US official.
By Saturday, all 99 of those injured at the train station – 80 adults and 19 children – had been evacuated to hospitals in Kyiv or Dnipro, CNN reported.
Ukraine’s state railway announced that seat number 52 will be left vacant on trains across the country as a poignant tribute to those who were slain.
With Post Wires
By
Jon Levine and
Mary Kay Linge
April 9, 2022 12:12pm
Updated
Boris Johnson: UK to send 120 armoured vehicles to Ukraine
0:12
/
0:50
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson traveled secretly to Kyiv on Saturday for a surprise meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to show his “unwavering support” — as European leaders stepped up their own backing of the embattled country amid continued fighting with Russian forces.
“Welcome to Kyiv, my friend!” Zelensky said as he warmly greeted Johnson outside the capital’s Mariinskyi Palace.
The news of Johnson’s arrival was broken in a tweet ffrom the Ukrainian Embassy to Britain that showed the two leaders conferring in an ornately decorated room with a simple caption: “Surprise,” along with a winking emoji.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson shake hands before a meeting.REUTERS
Emergency workers carry debris from a multi-story building destroyed in a Russian air raid.AP
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks during an interview with the Associated Press in his office in Kyiv, Ukraine on April 9, 2022.APLater, Zelensky guided Johnson on a tour of the city’s deserted streets, pointing out sandbagged windows and a somber memorial wall paying tribute to a few of the thousands of Ukrainians killed during weeks of resistance against Russia’s Feb. 24 invasion.
“In the last few weeks the world has found new heroes,” Johnson said as the two gave a joint press statement. “The Ukrainians have shown the courage of a lion … but you, Volodymyr, have given the roar of that lion.”
Zelensky used the visit to continue his call for tighter sanctions on Russia.
“It’s time to impose a complete embargo on Russian energy resources,” he said. “We have to put even more pressure on the Russian Federation.”
But he also declared that he still seeks a peaceful end to the war, despite the brutal Russian attacks on civilians.
Zelensky warmly greeted Johnson to Ukraine as the Russians continue their invasion of the country.AP
A Ukrainian missile is seen inside a destroyed building that was used as a temporary base by the Russian army.REUTERS
Locals get goods during a food distribution by the Ukrainian army.REUTERS
The aftermath of a Russian missile attack on Kramatorsk railway station in the Donetsk region.Office of the President of Ukrai“No one wants to negotiate with a person or people who tortured this nation … as a man, as a father, I understand this very well,” he said in an interview with the Associated Press. “But we don’t want to lose opportunities, if we have them, for a diplomatic solution.”
While Johnson was in Kyiv, the British government announced new plans to send anti-ship missile systems and 120 armored vehicles to Ukraine as part of a $130 million shipment of high-grade military equipment.
“It is because of President Zelensky’s resolute leadership and the invincible heroism and courage of the Ukrainian people that Putin’s monstrous aims are being thwarted,” Johnson said. “The UK stands unwaveringly with them in this fight, and we are in it for the long run.”
Children lay down on luggages as families wait to board a train at Kramatorsk central station.AFP via Getty ImagesAustria’s Chancellor Karl Nehammer also came to Kyiv for a separate meeting with Zelensky on Saturday, one day after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen made her own pilgrimage to the Ukrainian capital – visits made possible by Russia’s recent retreat from the area around the nation’s political center.
In other developments Saturday:
- Russian naval forces are launching cruise missiles into Ukraine’s eastern Donbas region to their military invasion, British military officials said.
- Italian Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said that his country will reopen its embassy in Ukraine “immediately after Easter,” and Nehammer also pledged to send Austria’s diplomats back to Kyiv.
- Russian forces destroyed an ammunition depot at the Myrhorod Air Base in central Ukraine, the Russian Defense Ministry said.
- The Ukrainian Parliament reported that at least 176 children have died and more than 324 have been injured over the course of the invasion.
- Russian Colonel Alexander Bespalov, a tank regiment commander, was killed – the ninth Russian colonel to die fighting in Ukraine.
“There are no words for the horror I’ve seen in Bucha, the ugly face of Putin’s army terrorizing people,” she said, a day after viewing a mass grave in the decimated town.
Zelensky, appearing via video link, demanded the prosecution of Russian soldiers and commanders for war crimes.
“Ukrainian courage has already united the whole democratic world,” he said. “But I would like Ukrainian courage to be shared by everyone in the world.”
A woman holds a child as families wait to board a train at Kramatorsk central station.AFP via Getty ImagesMeanwhile, in eastern Ukraine, the governor of the Luhansk region urged residents to flee as fierce Russian bombardment of civilian targets continued.
“They (Russia) are amassing forces for an offensive and we see the number of shelling has increased,” Gov. Serhiy Gaidai said Saturday in televised remarks.
Gaidai reported attacks on the towns of Rubizhne, Popasna and Hirske – as well as a Russian hit on a storage tank holding “remnants” of nitric acid.
The Ukrainian government set up 10 humanitarian corridors meant to guide refugees to safety in the western part of the country, Deputy Prime Minister Irina Vereschuk wrote on her Telegram account.
A woman cries as she tries to find a body of her son among debris of a residential building destroyed during Russia’s invasion.REUTERSInvading Russian forces have stepped up attacks along strategic points in the country’s east and south in the wake of their withdrawal from areas near Kiev and more central regions. The United States said tens of thousands of Russian troops would likely descend on eastern Ukraine this week.
The strategically important port city of Mariupol, 175 miles south of Luhansk, has been declared a humanitarian disaster by the Red Cross after weeks of relentless shelling left its 450,000 residents without food, water, or medical supplies – with little hope of evacuation.
The few who have managed to escape bring tales of horror.
A car burns as smoke from the fire rises after the strike at the Kramatorsk railway station.via REUTERSWhen desperately thirsty citizens gathered at water tanks to fill bottles, photojournalist Sergei Vaganov told the Times of London, a hail of Russian missiles rained down on them.
“I saw those who survived the bombs getting back on their feet, taking their water and walking over dead bodies back to their homes,” he said.
“When the world sees what happened in Mariupol, it will be Bucha multiplied by ten,” said Anna, a doctor at Mariupol’s city hospital. “It will be Bucha multiplied by a hundred, by a thousand.”
The call to flee Luhansk came hours after a Russian rocket attack at a railway station in the nearby city of Kramatorsk, which left at least least 52 people dead. The station was frequently crowded and served as a hub for those looking to flee westward.
US officials believe the Russians used a short range SS-21 Scarab ballistic missile to carry out the attack.
Zelensky blasted the strike as “another war crime” late Friday and called for a robust international response.
“Like the massacre in Bucha, the missile strike on Kramatorsk must be one of the charges at the tribunal, which is bound to happen,” he said.
Zelensky showed Johnson Kyiv’s deserted streets.APRussian officials have denied responsibility for the attack and instead have said it was the Ukrainians who fired on their own people to use their deaths as a propaganda tool.
“We are not buying the denial by the Russians that they weren’t responsible,” scoffed one US official.
By Saturday, all 99 of those injured at the train station – 80 adults and 19 children – had been evacuated to hospitals in Kyiv or Dnipro, CNN reported.
Ukraine’s state railway announced that seat number 52 will be left vacant on trains across the country as a poignant tribute to those who were slain.
With Post Wires
Similar threads
