Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky defiantly revealed his location during a video posted to social media Monday and vowed, “I’m staying in Kyiv.
“On Bankova Street [where the presidential offices are located],” he said. “Not hiding, and I’m not afraid of anyone.”
Zelensky pointed the camera out the window to show what appeared to be nighttime in Kyiv and also the Gorodetsky House, which sits across the street from his offices.
The brazen declaration comes after the Ukrainian leader is reported to have dodged three attempts on his life by Kremlin assassins since the Russian invasion began.
The video begins selfie-style and tracks Zelensky as he walks through wood-paneled hallways. It then cuts to a higher-resolution video camera showing the president sitting at a desk, putting away his cell phone.
Ukrainian officials last week said they’d eliminated a pair of Chechen hit squads gunning for Zelensky — and that intelligence thwarting the attempts had come from sources within the Russian security apparatus.
Zelensky is also believed to have survived two attempts on his life by the shadowy Wagner Group, a mercenary outfit made up of Russian ex-soldiers and suspected of war crimes across the globe.
This isn’t the first time Zelensky taunted his would-be killers — soon after turning down an evacuation offer by the US in the first days of fighting, Zelensky posted a video of himself on the streets of Kyiv.
“I’m here,” he said.