Status: 02/18/2022 8:06 p.m
The mayor of Kiev, Klitschko, does not think war is out of the question. He expects it almost every hour, he said BR-Interview. At the Munich Security Conference, he asked for support in the form of weapons.
At the Munich Security Conference, Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko asked for more backing for Ukraine. “We need support. Without support it will be difficult for us,” said the ex-boxing world champion in an interview with the BR. He thanked Germany for the reconstruction of the economy over the past eight years, but with a view to the aid announced so far in the current conflict, he found clear words:
Germany has helped Ukraine a lot and brought stability to the region. But today we need weapons to defend ourselves. We cannot defend our country with helmets.
Press conference with Vitali Klitschko, Mayor of Kiev, on the threat to Ukraine
2/17/2022 4:49 p.m
“A war is not out of the question”
Klitschko also commented on the risk of war. “Today in Ukraine everyone is talking about a possible invasion by Russia.” It was the first time in the history of Ukraine that more than 150,000 Russian soldiers were standing at the border and doing military exercises. “We hear a lot of threats, hear of many scenarios of how the situation could develop. War is not out of the question.”
He emphasized that he couldn’t stay at the Munich Security Conference the whole time because “the danger of an invasion could arise every hour.” “If that happens, the airspace could be closed at any hour. I’m not comfortable with the thought of leaving my city and families alone.” You hear many threats and many scenarios of how the situation could develop. “A war is not out of the question.”
Lots of speculation about starting point
Referring to speculation that Russia could provoke a war and that it could start in the long-contested regions of Luhansk and Donetsk, Klitschko referred to Moscow. “Experts speak of various ways in which the situation could develop from where the Russians could invade.” He named the Crimea, the south of Ukraine, the north, the border with Belarus or the east. “That’s why I don’t want to speculate. The only person who can answer that is in Moscow.”
desire of a modern, democratic country
Klitschko sees the main reason for the conflict in Ukraine’s westward orientation. Ukraine has a desire to build a modern, European, democratic country. “That doesn’t fit the vision of the Russian government,” said Klitschko. “We were in the Soviet Union. And we don’t want to go back to the USSR.” One sees the Ukrainian future as part of the European family.