According to a media report, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s troops came very close to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his family on the first day of the war of aggression. This is reported by reporter Simon Shuster in the cover story of the new “Time” magazine, for which he accompanied Zelenskyy in his everyday life during the war for two weeks in April.
Reports of thwarted attacks on Zelenskyy began shortly after the start of the war. But now presidential adviser Oleksiy Arestovych, who works for Ukraine’s military intelligence service, has told the magazine that Russian troops tried to kill or arrest Zelenskyy and his family as early as February 24.
[Alle aktuellen Nachrichten zum russischen Angriff auf die Ukraine bekommen Sie mit der Tagesspiegel-App live auf ihr Handy. Hier für Apple- und Android-Geräte herunterladen.]
The Ukrainian armed forces reportedly thwarted two Russian attempts to break into the presidential office on Bankova Street, in the middle of the government district.
Declared ‘Goal #1’
Zelenskyi stayed on Bankova Street until the end. According to Zelenskyi, his wife, 17-year-old daughter and nine-year-old son were also there on February 24, but have already left the city centre. “According to our information, the enemy declared me number one target, my family number two target,” Zelenskyi said in one of the first days of the war.
The Ukrainian president reported that on the first day of the war, gunfire from Russian troops could be heard even in his office. According to the Time report, as Ukrainian forces repelled Russian attacks in Kiev, the president’s bodyguards tried to barricade the presidential office on Bankova Street.
More about the Ukrainian war on Tagesspiegel Plus:
In addition to Zelenskyy and his family, family members of his staff were also there, including the Speaker of the Ukrainian Parliament Ruslan Stefanchuk. The man who would have taken over if Zelenskyy had truly been unable to rule.
Zelenskyy rejected breakout offers
When the exchange of fire continued through the night of February 25, in the vicinity of the presidential office, Zelenskyy’s bodyguards reportedly turned off the lights, brought bulletproof vests and handed the president and other high-ranking politicians assault rifles. . According to the Time report, few of them knew how to use the weapons.
The next day, Zelenskyy rejected both the US offer to flee to Poland and the possibility of being taken to a bunker outside Kiev. The following night, he recorded the video with his closest aides in front of the presidential office, which traveled around the world.
On February 25, Volodymyr Zelenskyy appeared with his closest aides in front of the presidential office in Kiev. Photo: Zuma Press/dpa
Zelenskyy’s bodyguards advised the president to leave the presidential office on Bankova Street precisely because it is surrounded by residential buildings. From there, Russian snipers would have a chance to hit Zelenskyy. According to the Time report, some houses would be so close to the presidential office that grenades thrown from the houses could enter the building through the windows.
In early March, there was already talk of failed attacks on Zelenskyi: in addition to special forces led by Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov, mercenaries from the Russian Wagner Group also allegedly attempted attacks. The magazine reported a total of three failed attempts at the start of the Ukraine war.
The Wagner mercenaries must therefore wait for the “Spetsnaz”, a Russian special unit, to create a safe corridor for them from Kiev so that they can escape after the assassination attempt. They carried out the attacks during the assault on Kiev, which would have given them enough distraction. However, the Russian military convoy made little progress in front of the city – which is why the plan failed.