These developments come after Russian President Vladimir Putin claims that it was attacking Ukraine as it was necessary to protect the civilians in the Donbas region, accusing the Ukraine government of being neo-Nazis.
Following these attacks, Ukrainian Minister of Defense Alexey Reznikov has announced on his Facebook account that all veterans and volunteers are welcome to fight for Ukraine and that the government can arm the said individuals. All available Ukrainian citizens who want to fight can be armed by going to the nearest Territorial Defense Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine base. This comes after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that the Ukrainian government would be calling up military reservists aged 18 to 60 for a service of up to one year as the full-scale invasion of Russia looms.
“As the Supreme Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, I issued a decree on the conscription of reservists during a special period,” he said during his announcement last February 22. “We must increase the readiness of the Ukrainian Army for all possible changes in the operational situation,” he added.
As a result of the various attacks in Ukraine, both sides have now suffered casualties. The Ukrainian side has killed 50 Russian soldiers and occupiers while the Russians have taken 40 Ukrainian soldiers’ lives and around 10 civilian lives amidst the bombing.
President Zelensky, in a live broadcast, has also announced that he was cutting off all official diplomatic relations with the Kremlin, stating that Ukraine, together with its Armed Forces, is fighting Russia toe to toe and that it would not stand down against Moscow. During his fiery speech, he compared Russia and Putin and its actions to World War II’s Nazi Germany. “Ukraine is defending itself, and we shall not cede our freedom,” he said. “Russia has attacked our state in the way Nazi Germany did during the Second World War.”
The President then called on all Ukrainian citizens with combat experience to volunteer and arm themselves to protect their motherland against Russia. This coincides with Ukrainian Minister of Defense Alexey Reznikov’s announcement that all Ukrainians who decide to fight against Russia will be armed by the Armed Forces. Zelensky also clarified that no bases and posts were being abandoned by troops as claimed by Russia and that Ukrainian forces were facing heavy enemy fire in different regions.
We will give weapons to anyone who wants to defend the country. Be ready to support Ukraine in the squares of our cities.
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 24, 2022
In response to these recent developments, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was quoted stating that the attacks were “…the saddest moment in my tenure as Secretary-General of the United Nations. I started this meeting of the Security Council addressing President Putin and telling him from the bottom of my heart: Stop your troops from an offensive against Ukraine, give peace a chance because too many people have died.”
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