Ukrainian born Dancing with the stars pro Maxim Chmerkovsky fears for his life and the lives of his friends in Kiev after the Russian invasion of the country at night.
The 42-year-old dancer shared tearful Instagram videos from the capital after the attack, telling fans he was seeking refuge in a “bomb shelter” and wanted to “return home”.
On Thursday, Russian forces fired on the city of nearly 3 million people with about two dozen attack helicopters, four of which are believed to have been shot down.
“S ** t’s going down”: Ukrainian-born Dancing With the Stars professional Maxim Chmerkovsky fears for his life and the lives of his friends in Kiev after a Russian invasion of the country at night
Filming from a balcony near the heart of Kiev, Max told his followers that “everyone hopes that the finality of this situation will be prevented, that there will be no such aggressive measures.”
As he took the selfie video, military sirens sounded approaching. Chmerkovsky talks about the Russian invasion, which has recently begun to unfold.
“Honestly, I’m getting really emotional. It was a little difficult. You know me, I stay strong. And I’m not showing it, but I want to go home, “he said.
The reality star added that he was grateful that his wife, dance colleague Peta Murgatroyd and their five-year-old son Shai Alexander were far away and not in danger.
After the attack: Shooting from a balcony near the heart of Kiev, Max told his followers that “everyone hopes that the finality of this situation will be prevented, that there will be no such aggressive measures.”
“Honestly, I’m getting really emotional. It was a little difficult. You know me, I stay strong. And I’m not showing it, but I want to go home, “he said.
“What I realize is that my friends whose children are here, whose mothers and fathers are here and the elderly are here, they can’t just run away,” Max continued.
“At the moment, I am not someone who is advocating for someone’s safety from a long distance, from a safe distance. “I’m someone who’s going to go to a bomb shelter because the shit is falling,” he said.
On Thursday, Kiev ordered civilians to bomb shelters and announced a curfew amid fears that Russia would strike the city after Ukrainian troops lost control of a key airport about 25 miles away.
“I know who this country is, what it represents, what it represents,” he said in a request for peace. “And this is not at all what is presented to the Russian people to justify this invasion.”
“At the moment, I am not someone who is advocating for someone’s safety from a long distance, from a safe distance. “I’m someone who’s going to go to a bomb shelter because the shit is falling,” he said.
Asylum: On Thursday, Kiev ordered civilians to bomb shelters and announced a curfew amid fears that Russia would strike the city after Ukrainian troops lost control of a key airport about 25 miles away.
He also directly criticized Russian President Vladimir Putin: “I think that in 2022 [in a] civilized world, this is not the way we do things.
“It’s all one man’s ambition,” he continued. “As much as it sounds, as comfortable as it sounds in Moscow, as comfortable as it is where you are in Russia, I just don’t think that’s the right thing to do and these are the right steps and these are the right actions.”
The star promised to try to keep his followers up to date with the situation abroad and asked people to respect his wife’s privacy at the moment.
“There is ALWAYS another way! WAR IS NEVER AN ANSWER! #standwithukraine, “he wrote in the video caption.
“There is ALWAYS another way! WAR IS NEVER AN ANSWER! #standwithukraine, “he wrote in the video caption.
“I will never be the same. It’s stressful and I’m regaining my old feelings like I did before. It really feels like it was when and why we left in the 90’s. Like my old post-traumatic stress disorder, which I finally fixed, it’s coming back.
Add: “I will never be the same. It’s stressful and I’m regaining my old feelings like I did before. It really feels like it was when and why we left in the 90’s. Like my old post-traumatic stress disorder, which I finally fixed, it’s coming back.
“I literally just forgot about those ‘always on edge’ feelings and actually started worrying about things like barbecue grills. I’m crying as I write this because everyone deserves to worry about barbecue grills, not fucking war. Embrace your loved ones. ‘
The Ukrainian army is fighting in almost every region of the country this afternoon, fighting the Russians for control of military bases, airports, cities and ports from Kharkov to Kiev and Donetsk to Odessa.
Battlefield: The Ukrainian army fought in almost every region of the country this afternoon, fighting the Russians for control of military bases, airports, cities and ports from Kharkov to Kiev and Donetsk to Odessa
This came after Vladimir Putin personally ordered an attack at about 5 a.m., firing a volley of missile fire that involved more than 100 short- and medium-range ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and surface-to-air missiles, and 75 bombers that targeted military sites, including barracks, warehouses and airports, to dismantle the country’s military command structure.
Russia said the strikes destroyed 74 Ukrainian military ground facilities, 11 airports, three command posts and 18 radar stations controlling Kiev’s anti-aircraft batteries.
This was followed by attacks from Crimea to the south on the city of Kherson, a northern offensive from Belarus to Kiev and an eastern offensive from Belgorod to Kharkov, where the heaviest fighting is taking place.
U.S. officials said this was only the “initial phase” of the attack and that most of the 190,000 Russian troops at the front remained in reserve. The target of the attack is “capture of key settlements” and “beheading of the Ukrainian government”, officials added.
Invasion: Vladimir Putin personally ordered an attack around 5 am, firing a volley of missile fire, which according to US intelligence involved more than 100 short- and medium-range ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and surface-to-air missiles and 75 bombers