Dhe President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, stressed after his participation in the virtual World Summit for Democracy that democracy absolutely needs a victory as soon as possible. Russia, meanwhile, is preparing for a long war against Ukraine and the West.
“All of us together – Ukrainians, all Europeans, our American allies, our friends on all continents – in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Australia – will do everything to bring this victory closer,” Zelenskyy said in his evening video address on Wednesday. “The victory of Ukraine, the victory of freedom, the victory for the rules-based international order.”
The US co-hosted the virtual summit with Costa Rica, the Netherlands, South Korea and Zambia. US President Joe Biden had already invited to a virtual meeting of this kind in December 2021. Zelenskyy underlined Biden’s leading role in the consolidation of the democratic world. “And this unity, as we see, is enough to fight for freedom,” he said. “But to win the battle against tyranny, we need more unity.”
Kremlin expects long conflict with West over Ukraine
According to the Kremlin, Russia is preparing for a long war with the West over Ukraine. “This is a confrontation with hostile states, with unfriendly countries, this is a hybrid war that they launched against our country. This is for a long time,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday. “Here we need toughness, self-conviction, determination and unity around the President.”