These images are not as grim as the drowned Syrian boy washed up on a beach. Nonetheless, I can’t shake them.
CNN:
Ukrainian citizens Yaryna Arieva and Sviatoslav Fursin got married just hours after Russia launched its invasion of their country. They spent their first day as a married couple collecting their rifles and getting ready to defend Ukraine.
It was supposed to be a May wedding, but the couple were no longer sure of what their future holds.
Arieva and Fursin have both signed up with the Territorial Defense Forces, a branch of Ukraine’s armed forces that is comprised mostly of volunteers. Once armed, the couple headed to the office of their political party, the European Solidarity.
“Right now, we are here and we are doing everything we can. So there is a lot of work to do, but still, I hope everything will be OK,” Arieva said, adding that some civilians who are not part of the defense force were also given rifles.
Kira Rudik (below), a member of Ukraine’s parliament, armed herself in preparation for the defense of Kyiv.
“I learn to use #Kalashnikov and prepare to bear arms,” Rudik tweets. “It sounds surreal as just a few days ago it would never come to my mind. Our #women will protect our soil the same way as our #men. Go #Ukraine!”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has surprised the world (and Russian autocrat Vladimir Putin) by becoming the leader no one thought the politically inexperienced former entertainer could be. He is personally leading the resistance to the Russian invasion while targeted for arrest or worse by Putin. He held firm against extortion threats from former American President Donald Trump. He’s carrying a Kalashnikov now in defiance of Putin’s invasion troops now.
Zelenskyy continues to tweet videos to demonstrate he is still in place and defiant. As of 2 a.m. this morning, MSNBC reports Kyiv has not fallen.
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was asked to evacuate Kyiv at the behest of the U.S. government but turned down the offer.
Zelenskyy said in response: “The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,” according to a senior American intelligence official with direct knowledge of the conversation, who described Zelenskyy as upbeat.
Russian president Vladimir Putin has isolated himself on the world stage. Would-be ally China abstained in a U.N. Security Council vote condemning Russia (that Russia vetoed). “India and the United Arab Emirates also abstained, while Brazil, another ‘swing vote,’ joined the U.S.-led condemnation, Axios reports.
Ally Kazakhstan has denied Putin support, NBC News reports:
Kazakhstan, one of Russia’s closest allies and a southern neighbor, is denying a request for its troops to join the offensive in Ukraine, officials said Friday.
Additionally, the former Soviet republic said it is not recognizing the Russia-created breakaway republics upheld by Russia’s president, Vladimir Putin, as a pretext for its aggression in Ukraine.
If reports are accurate, bodies of perhaps hundreds of Russian paratroops will be heading home soon:
KYIV, Ukraine — A second Russian Ilyushin Il-76 military transport plane was shot down near Bila Tserkva, 50 miles (85 kilometers) south of Kyiv, according to two American officials with direct knowledge of conditions on the ground in Ukraine.
On Friday, Ukraine’s military said it had shot down a Russian military transport plane with paratroopers on board.
According to a statement from the military’s General Staff, the first Il-76 heavy transport plane was shot down near Vasylkiv, a city 25 miles south of Kyiv. The Russian military has not commented on either incident so far, and the reports could not be immediately verified.
The news is sure to intensify opposition to Putin’s invasion in Russia proper. Those protests continued Friday and could further erode both Putin’s position and lead to even more conflicting opinions about his mental state.
The ultimate outcome for Ukraine may not be in doubt. Ukraine is outgunned and outmanned. But whether what Putin gains in territory will offset the damage he suffers in international isolation and in Russian blood may not be known for some time.
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