Ukraine President's adviser slams West, says 'you drink coffee while our cities burn'

Mikhail Podoljak, advisor to the head of the cabinet of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Monday shared an image of the war-torn Ukraine and called out the West. The ruined streets, the city and the armoured vehicles that were set on fire by the Russian forces are frequent images that have been coming from Ukraine ever since the onset of Russian invasion 11 days ago. Podoljak shared one such image on Twitter, stating that Ukrainian cities, even though Russia is destroying them, are still fighting, while someone in the West is watching it while enjoying a coffee and a croissant. 

Notably, Mikhail Podoljak is a member of the Ukrainian delegation that is currently partaking in peace negotiations with Russia. It is pertinent to mention here that the third round of talks between Ukraine and Russia is scheduled for Monday. Previously, Russia had announced that there would be a temporary ceasefire so that civilians could leave Kyiv, Kharkiv and Sumy. 

Meanwhile, so far, the West has sent huge aid to Ukraine in logistics and imposed sanctions on Russia. However, the authorities in Kyiv are asking for a more active military engagement of the West, and above all, to introduce a no-fly zone over Ukraine. However, the West, instead of showing support, has stated that declaring a no-fly zone would mean a "full-fledged war in Europe".

Zelenskyy slams West, says 'sanctions are not enough'

Notably, on Sunday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the West to do more for his embattled country, asserting that “sanctions are not enough”. Zelenskyy heaped criticism on Western leaders for not responding to the Russian Defence Ministry’s announcement that it would strike the war-torn country’s military-industrial complex. He also called for organising a “tribunal” to bring to justice those who order and carry out such crimes.

Zelenskyy went on to accuse the West of killing Ukrainians as he asked the EU countries, US, UK and the allied nations to provide Kyiv with fighter jets so that the nation can counter Russian missiles. He even slammed what he described as “weak” NATO for its decision of not implementing a no-fly zone.

It is pertinent to mention here that so far, Moscow has been claiming that it has been targeting military and strategically important points. Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly blamed the war on Ukraine’s leadership and criticised their resistance to the invasion. Moscow had earlier even declared a partial ceasefire on the route for the civilians to escape the war zone. However, hours later, the ceasefire was breached and Russia took control of several Ukrainian cities.

(Image: AP/Twitter)