Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was asked to evacuate Kyiv with the help of the US government but turned down the offer, a report from Associated Press said.
“The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,” according to a senior American intelligence official, the report said. The official, it said, described Zelensky as “upbeat”.
Invading Russian forces closed in on Ukraine’s capital on Saturday, in an apparent encircling movement after a barrage of airstrikes on cities and military bases around the country.
Ukraine’s army has said in a Facebook post that it had repelled a Russian attack on one of Kyiv’s main avenues.
The developments took place as Russia vetoed a draft UN Security Council resolution that would have deplored Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
Eleven of the council’s 15 members voted for the motion, co-written by the United States and Albania. China, India and the UAE abstained.
The resolution was doomed to fail because of Moscow’s veto power as a permanent member of the council.
Still, the debate offered the chamber an important opportunity to voice its condemnation of President Vladimir Putin’s decision to launch a full-scale offensive against Russia’s neighbor.
Following the vote, president Zelensky tweeted that the draft resolution was co-sponsored by an “unprecedented” number of United Nations Member States and stressed that the world is with Ukraine.
“As Russia continues to attack Kyiv, the draft resolution is co-sponsored by an unprecedented number of UN Member States. This proves: the world is with us, the truth is with us, the victory will be ours!.” he tweeted.
Earlier, the Ukraine president took a swipe at the US and said “we are defending our country alone”. “This morning, we are defending our country alone. Just like yesterday, the most powerful country in the world looked on from a distance,” he said in a Facebook video, as quoted by CNN.
He also released a self-shot video from central Kyiv on Friday vowing alongside key aides to stay and defend the capital against the Russian invasion.
“We’re all here. Our military is here. Citizens in society are here. We’re all here defending our independence, our country, and it will stay this way,” Zelensky said, standing outside the presidency building.
