UKRAINE drafted a secret plan to move its government to London before tyrant Vladimir Putin invaded in February 2022.
But when Russian forces launched their illegal assault Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky famously refused Western pleas to seek safe haven.
EPAUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has led his country through almost three years of war with Russia[/caption]
APA Ukrainian soldier fires towards Russian positions near Kharkiv, Ukraine, in November 2024[/caption]
APFirefighters extinguish a fire after a Russian attack on a residential neighbourhood in Kharkiv, February 2024[/caption]
“The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,” he told the US, according to the Ukrainian embassy in Britain.
The embassy said Ukrainians were “proud of their President” as he stood strong in the face of danger when Putin was expected to be able to take capital Kyiv in just a matter of days.
Vadym Prystaiko, former Ukrainian ambassador to London, revealed details behind the London-Ukraine contingency plan.
He said: “As far as our work in London is concerned, we actually proactively wanted to offer the [Ukrainian] government a place to continue our work at the time of possible search for a place.
“When we talked to our colleagues in Britain, no one talked about a government in exile.
“They talked about the continuation of the [Ukrainian] government [from London].”
He added: “This was not a decision of the Ukrainian government.
“It was my proposal at the time, if needed.”
East2WestFormer UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and former Ukrainian ambassador to London, Vadym Prystaiko, in February 2024[/caption]
East2WestFormer Ukrainian ambassador to London, Vadym Prystaiko, reveals a plan for the Ukrainian government to operate from London[/caption]
Heroic Zelensky’s defiance inspired hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians to defend their country, and the West to back Kyiv with weapons and money.
In a video shared from Kyiv the day after Russia invaded, Zelensky said: “I am here. We are not putting down arms.
“We will be defending our country, because our weapon is truth, and our truth is that this is our land, our country, our children, and we will defend all of this.
“That is it. That’s all I wanted to tell you. Glory to Ukraine,” he added.
His heroic actions come in stark contrast to those of recently ousted tyrant Bashar al-Assad, who fled Syria for Russia in a cowardly escape as rebel forces launched a coup.
Putin’s forces were initially forced to make a humiliating retreat and did not fulfill their ‘special military operation’ as quickly as Putin once boasted they would.
Now almost three years on Ukraine’s forces have held up an impressive defence against the Russian onslaught.
Prystaiko said his proposal about using London ahead of other possible locations for the Ukrainian government – if forced into exile – was made in early February when he accompanied Boris Johnson on a trip to Kryiv.
The aim was to be able to relocate “all the precious metals, papers, money” from Kyiv to London so that the Ukrainian government could organise and fund opposition to a Putin invasion.
On his February 2022 trip to Kyiv, Johnson had warned of “the biggest security crisis that Europe has faced for decades”.
Russia had been massing thousands of men and military kit along the border with Ukraine and in Crimea, in the year leading up to the 2022 invasion.
Satellite pics showed armour, missiles and weaponry being shifted towards the border.
A second massing began in October 2021 – with even more soldiers – and by December over 100,000 troops were gathered around Ukraine from three sides.
East2WestFormer UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson during his visit to Kyiv in April 2022[/caption] Published: [#item_custom_pubDate]
