Prince William and Kate were thanked this morning by Ukrainian President Vladimir Green and his wife, after the royals said they were standing with them in their battle.
The supporting message from the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge was sent on Saturday as Putin’s troops bombed the country.
This morning, too, Mr Zelenski and his wife, Olena, said they were “grateful” for the rare political comment from the royal family.
They added that support has increased as Ukraine continues to struggle Russiathe invasion.
President Zelensky said: “Olena and I are grateful to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge that at this crucial moment, when Ukraine is boldly opposed to the Russian invasion, they stand by our country and support our brave citizens.
“Good will triumph.”
Harry and Megan also sent their words in support of Ukraine, but were not mentioned by Zelensky. It is not known if he thanked them in private.
The Sussex family posted on their website on February 24, “Prince Harry and Megan, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex and all of us in Archewell stand with the people of Ukraine.”
They echoed that support on television when they accepted the president’s award at the NAACP Image Awards.
William and Kate’s remarks were published on Saturday and were a rare foray into politics.
The thank-you note to William and Kate was released shortly after 8 p.m.
The Duke and Duchess entertained President Vladimir Zelensky and his wife Elena in the magnificent throne room
The area today near the building of the district administration, which according to city authorities was hit by a rocket attack, in the center of Kharkov, Ukraine
Prince Harry and Megan Markle, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, accept the presidential award at the 53rd NAACP Image Awards show, where they reiterated their support for Ukraine
Harry and Megan also posted a statement of support on their website Archewell on February 24
Their February 26 post on Twitter insists they are “standing up” to the people of a war-torn nation as they “bravely fight” for their future.
The royal couple also recalled the “privilege” of meeting with President Zelensky and his wife when they arrived in London in 2020.
In a personal tweet signed by the couple, they wrote: “In October 2020, we had the privilege of meeting with President Zelensky and the First Lady to learn about their hope and optimism for Ukraine’s future.
“Today we are with the President and the entire people of Ukraine as they bravely fight for this future.”
William and Kate welcomed Ukrainians to Buckingham Palace in October 2020 – their first audience since the first blockade of Covid.
The Duke and Duchess entertained President Vladimir Zelensky and his wife, Elena, in the magnificent Throne Room.
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge said they were “standing by” the people of Ukraine as they “bravely” fought for their future
William and Kate welcomed Ukrainians to Buckingham Palace in October 2020 – their first audience since the first blockade of Covid
The tweet from William and Kate was sent out on Saturday and was a rare political message
War in Ukraine: the latest
- Russia pledged on Monday to retaliate against the EU after supporting Ukraine, and warned the West not to supply weapons to the country.
- A second round of talks aimed at ending Russia’s attack on Ukraine is expected to take place after the first meeting ended without a resolution.
- Ukraine’s defense ministry says Russia has lost 5,300 troops, 29 planes, 29 helicopters and 151 tanks
- Russia’s Defense Ministry admitted for the first time that it had suffered losses, but declined to say how much
- Ukraine has reported 352 civilian deaths since the invasion, including 14 children. The UN has identified civilian casualties at 102, including seven children.
- Russia’s economy falls into free fall as Western sanctions imposed over the weekend take effect, with the ruble falling to its lowest level ever
- Moscow’s central bank has more than doubled interest rates to 20 percent
- Russia orders people and companies to sell 80% of their income in foreign currency, forcing them to buy the ruble to help maintain it
- Moscow Stock Exchange will not open at least 15:00 in an attempt to prevent a total collapse
- Zelensky allows Ukrainian prisoners to be released if they join the defense forces to “pay off their debt”
- The President of Ukraine also announced the creation of an “international brigade” for foreign volunteers wishing to join the army, after “thousands” applied
- Spanish foreign minister calls Putin’s order to bring nuclear forces on high alert “another sign [his] absolute irrationality “
- Former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe says his country should be open to deploying nuclear weapons
- Germany announces $ 112 million fund to rebuild the country’s armed forces, more than double its current self-defense budget
- EU announces for the first time in its history that it will send funds to Ukraine for weapons – including fighter jets
The couple did not wear masks, but observed social distancing and looked in good spirits during the meeting, the first royal event to take place at Buckingham Palace in nearly six months.
William and Kate held the audience on behalf of the Queen, who remained at Windsor Castle to fulfill a limited number of commitments.
Ukraine’s president has accused Russia of war crimes after Vladimir Putin’s forces launched attacks that were thought to be cluster and vacuum bombs in a bid to reverse the course of the conflict they have been losing so far.
In a late-night address to Russia, Vladimir Zelensky said “there will definitely be an international tribunal” for “violating all conventions” and added that “no one in the world will forgive you for killing a peaceful Ukrainian people.” . ‘ Hague prosecutors say they intend to launch an investigation “as soon as possible”.
Zelensky speaks after an attack that looked like a cluster bomb on the city of Kharkov on Monday, killing at least 11 people and injuring dozens more, and after Ukraine’s ambassador to the United States accused Putin’s forces of using a banned thermobaric bomb against the capital Kyiv at night.
The bombing of Kharkiv continued on Tuesday morning with a rocket landing right in front of the building of the civil public administration, destroying the road outside and blowing up the windows of the building itself.
Footage from the interior shows that the building is badly damaged, with collapsed ceilings and scattered rubble.
This happened when Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – which suffered a heavy defeat in its initial plan to capture key targets and infrastructure in precision strikes – entered a new phase, ostensibly to surround and besiege cities such as Kharkov, Kyiv, Mariupol, Sumy and Kherson, who have so far fiercely resisted – and bombed them to obey, using indiscriminate weapons in the echo of Russia’s tactics against rebel forces in Syria as it fought dictator Bashar al-Assad.
Fears that Kyiv will be hit hard are rising to new heights on Tuesday, as satellite images revealed that a column of Russian vehicles heading for the capital is actually 40 miles long, up from 4 miles reported in Monday.
The most advanced parts of the column are now only 15 miles from the city, being significantly slowed by Ukrainian resistance, but still approaching every day.
The building of the regional administration, which according to city authorities was hit by a rocket attack, in the center of Kharkov, Ukraine
Ukrainian police escort refugees to the Medica border crossing in Poland today
Russia’s plan appears to use heavy armor to encircle and shell the city before troops move for street-to-street battles.
A taste of what was to come struck Kharkiv on Monday as bombs fell on Ukraine’s most friendly city in Ukraine – 25 miles from the border and home to 1.5 million people – in a bid to break his will to resist.
The hail of bombs, shells and rockets that began to fall at noon left at least 11 people dead, including three children, and homes and even schools were destroyed.