The President of Ukraine Vladimir GreenRussia’s chief aide called for more support from the West to repel Russia’s attacks and warned that Vladimir Putin it would “go for blood beyond Ukraine” if its allies did not do more to stop it.
“This war could be a prologue to a greater European or even global massacre,” wrote Andriy Ermak, head of the Ukrainian president’s office. New York Times guest essay he wrote from the bunker in the capital to President Zelenski.
He wrote while officials in Mariupol said he had launched a “full-scale genocide” after Putin’s men launched a 15-hour artillery shelling and a day after a Russian strike was aimed at a TV tower in Kyiv and damaged a nearby Holocaust memorial in Babi Yar.
“Europe has never seen violence and naked territorial ambitions on such a scale since the end of World War II,” Ermak wrote, urging Ukraine’s Western allies to address the “existential challenge” that Putin poses to the world order.
Ermak said Ukraine has accelerated the severity of its aggression since its inception in 2014. “This is because we know that this war is not just for Ukraine. The Kremlin wants to create a new Russian empire, “he added.
“Again, make no mistake: Mr Putin aims to develop this ideology by going beyond Ukraine for blood. It must be stopped.
Yermak called on Ukraine’s allies to send more firepower, including anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, and called on NATO to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine.
He also called for tougher sanctions in the form of a full embargo on all Russian exports, including oil, to the United States and Europe.
Andriy Ermak (left), chief aide to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky (right), pleads for more support from the West to repel Russia’s attacks
Ukrainian military says Russia has resumed its attack “on all fronts” today, with paratroopers landing in Kharkiv, tanks and trucks rushing to the center of Kherson and striking in Mariupol and Zhytomyr
The presidential aide thanked the allies for the weapons and equipment they had already provided and the sanctions they had imposed on Russia, but said Ukraine needed more support and wrote: “The future and survival of our country largely depend. from the West. ”
“This war could be a prologue to a larger European or even global massacre,” Ermak added.
Zelensky and President Joe Biden spoke on Tuesday, during which the Ukrainian president called for more security, military and humanitarian aid. Ermak outlined what his country needed to repel Putin’s invasion as a 40-mile convoy of Russian troops invaded Kyiv.
“Ukraine does not want its allies to put boots on the ground,” he wrote. “But we need the West to support us to continue to protect our families and our land. We need to show Russia – in painful terms – the mistake it has made. “
Yermak called for more ammunition, anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons, and called on NATO to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine.
“We recognize that this would be a serious escalation of the war and that NATO could lead to a direct conflict with Russia,” he wrote. “But we firmly believe that Russia will not stop at Ukraine alone, which will potentially involve NATO in this conflict anyway.”
As for sanctions, Ermak called for every Russian bank to be cut off from the SWIFT banking system and for every Russian oligarch to be sanctioned. He also called for a full embargo on all Russian exports, including oil, to the United States and Europe.
“These measures would not be without cost to the world economy, but the alternative is much worse,” he wrote.
Finally, he called on the international community to exclude Russia from the United Nations or, at the very least, to exclude it from the UN Security Council, where it has the right to veto it.
Yermak referred to Article 4 of the 1994 Budapest Memorandum of Security Guarantees, in which the United States, the United Kingdom and Russia agreed to respect Ukraine’s sovereignty and demand “immediate” assistance from the UN Security Council if the country faced a nuclear threat.
“Just because the aggressor – Russia – vetoes the actions of the UN Security Council, does not release other countries from the promises they made to Ukraine,” Ermak said.
“The Kremlin wants to create a new Russian empire,” Ermak wrote the same day the campus of the Karazin National University (above) in Kharkiv was destroyed after being hit by a Russian missile.
Yermak made his request the day after a Russian strike was aimed at a TV tower in Kyiv and damaged the nearby Holocaust Memorial in Babi Yar (top)
Despite the bleak prospects, Ermak praised the resilience of the Ukrainian people in defending their district and community.
“Russian forces are experiencing fierce resistance from both the Ukrainian armed forces and Ukrainian citizens, who are throwing home-made Molotov cocktails, which the Ukrainian government is encouraging them to make,” he wrote.
Yermak also cited US Pentagon reports that Russian troops were surrendering or sabotaging their own vehicles and efforts to avoid fighting. “They need to know that this war is unfair,” he wrote.
Yermak echoed President Zelenski’s tweet published on Tuesday after the attack on Babi Yar, where Nazi occupiers killed more than 33,000 Jews in two days in 1941.
“To the world: what’s the point of saying ‘never again’ for 80 years if the world is silent when a bomb falls on the same spot on Babin Yar?” At least 5 killed. History repeats itself … “, tweeted President Zelenski.
Ermak finished his essay with a final request. “Staying with us today and helping us is the only way to achieve peace for all and to ensure that history does not repeat itself – so that our future does not reflect the darkest times in Europe,” he wrote.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon announced on Wednesday that it would postpone its test of Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles, scheduled for this weekend in the midst of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s attack on Ukraine, so as not to “misunderstand” the move.
Defense Ministry spokesman John Kirby said the move was a demonstration of “restraint” as the Russian leader put his country’s nuclear forces on high alert and continued his attack on Ukraine.
“This is not a step back in our readiness,” he assured during a press briefing on Wednesday.
Kirby said at the beginning of the event: “I often come here and tell you what we have done both in terms of exercises and operations. Today I want to talk a little about something we will not do, and I want to explain why.
Despite the bleak prospects, Ermak praised the resilience of the Ukrainian people in defending their district and community. Above, civilians helped build makeshift barricades around the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant to stop Russia from taking over.
A civilian trained to throw Molotov cocktails in the city of Zhytomyr, 80 miles west of Kyiv, as Russian forces advance
Civilians trained to throw Molotov cocktails to defend the city as Russian invasion of Ukraine continues in Zhytomyr
“Last weekend, as you saw, President Putin raised a special alert with Russia’s nuclear forces. Now, in this time of heightened tension, the United States and other members of the international community have rightly seen this as a dangerous and irresponsible and, as I said before, unnecessary step. “
“In an attempt to demonstrate that we have no intention of taking any action that may be misunderstood or misinterpreted, the Secretary of Defense has ordered that our test launch of Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles, scheduled for this week, be postponed,” he said.
“We did not take this decision lightly, but instead to demonstrate that we are a responsible nuclear power,” Kirby added.
Russia stepped up attacks on Ukraine’s major cities on Wednesday when Mariupol authorities said a “full-scale genocide” was under way as Putin’s men launched a 15-hour artillery shelling while Kharkiv was also subjected to heavy bombardment in the dark. what may come to be in the capital of Kyiv.
Ukraine’s emergency services estimate that 2,000 civilians have been killed so far during the Russian invasion, although that figure is likely to be underestimated, given that it does not take into account Wednesday’s figures.
Biden said essentially Monday that Americans should not worry about a nuclear war with Russia.
Meanwhile, Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, came under heavy shelling in the early hours as Russian troops tried to encircle and capture it after days of fighting – with a rocket hitting the university building and the police station in the early hours before the city council as well. hit, as one of the explosions was filmed in a dramatic video.
The bombing gives a grim taste to what is likely to come for other cities such as Kyiv, after analysts warned that the Russian military – after suffering heavy losses in trying to strike ambitious precision strikes – would likely resort to surrounding cities. bomb to submit to the force of bloody victory.