Minutes after Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s New Year’s address, in which he honored those who had battled for their country since the invasion on February 24, the sirens began to sound.
Just after midnight, explosions were reported in Kyiv and air raid sirens blasted across the country, compelling Ukrainians to abandon New Year’s celebrations and seek refuge in bomb shelters.
The most recent suspected Russian volley followed explosions on the eve of the New Year in different locations of Ukraine, with one confirmed fatality and twenty injuries in the capital alone.
As the sirens blared in Kyiv in the early minutes of 2023, some people screamed “Glory to Ukraine” from their balconies. Laud the heroes!”
Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of the city, stated that explosions had been heard and that air defense was functioning.
He sent an image on Telegram that appeared to indicate where a rocket fragment had struck a car in the Shevchenkivskyi neighborhood of Kyiv.
Minutes after Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s New Year’s address, in which he congratulated those who had battled for their country since the invasion on February 24, air raid sirens began to ring.
He urged the populace, “I want to wish us all one thing: triumph.
That is the key point. One wish for every Ukrainian
This year should be the year of return. The coming back of our people. Soldiers – to their respective families Inmates – to their houses. Immigration – to Ukraine. Restitution of our lands. And the temporarily occupied will be liberated permanently.
“Resumption of normal life. To joyful moments unrestricted by curfew. To earthly pleasures without airborne alerts. The recovery of what was taken from us. The adolescence of our children and the retirement years of our parents.
“May the New Year deliver everything? We are prepared to battle for it. That is why we are all here. I’m here. Here we are. You’ve arrived. Everyone is present. All of us are from Ukraine.
“Praise to Ukraine! Best wishes for the New Year!”
There were social media accounts of some being moved to tears by the speech.
Vladimir Putin stated in his presentation that 2022 will be a year of “tough but necessary decisions” and “major milestones towards Russia’s complete sovereignty and the robust consolidation of our society.”
The Russian president again criticized the West, reiterating earlier charges that it supports Neo-Nazis in Ukraine.
He stated, “For years, Western elites hypocritically guaranteed us all of their peaceful intentions, including the conclusion of the most difficult struggle in Donbas.
“They sponsored neo-Nazis in every way possible, who continued to commit military, overtly terroristic actions against the civilian population of the people’s republics of Donbas.
“The West lied about peace but was prepared for aggression, a fact it now admits openly and without shame. And they use Ukraine and its people cynically to weaken and divide Russia.
“We have never permitted this, and we will not permit it now.”
