President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has hit all the right chords as Putin’s rival in the devastating war. Who is he and what brought him to the moment?
The world is standing on the edge of World War III and possible nuclear combat. The people of Ukraine, displaced from their sovereign homeland, are seeking shelter in surrounding countries.
Most of them have chosen to stay back and take up arms against the violent, unjustifiable hegemony of Russia’s dictator – to fight an uphill battle against the nation hellbent on ripping international laws and humanity apart for the unification of a historical nostalgia that holds no ground in the 21st century. To stand with their leader who has abandoned the comfort of air-conditioned president’s office to fight the battle alongside defence Forces.
And as the events unfold, we are witnessing the live case study of one war and two leaderships. While Russian President Vladimir Putin etches the egregious episode of tyranny, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensyky reinstates how far the right leadership can go.
Despite having the biggest army in the world, second-largest stock of nuclear warheads, a planned launch of invasion and world-class defence weapons, Russia is having a hard time winning the war. On the other hand, a nation much smaller in the area and military resources than Moscow.
So how far the war with dignity can go against a tyrannous regime? Here is what the comedian-turned-politician president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy teaches the world about a good fight.
How Volodymyr Zelenksyy is writing a very important message for history textbooks
As soon as Russia launched a military invasion against Ukraine, the West was quick to react on paper. It condemned Putin’s intentions, bought the economy of Russia under the radar of sanctions and Western media began mass scale anti-Russian reportage. However, was it enough?
Sanctions are the worn-out, feeble tools to hold the violators of international laws accountable.
These economic sanctions are often more harmful to the companies internally, especially for American firms. In addition, they also produce unfavourable consequences, often triggering a worse way out. Like, turning towards authoritarian regimes for the lost support. It hardly affects the government, on the contrary, innocent citizens bear the brunt.
Most important, sanctions alone cannot achieve the desired result in a situation as delicate as a war.
President Zelenskyy knows this and is not afraid of calling out the so-called powerful West for the half-baked support. While talking about Ukraine’s fight against the Russian anarchy, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, “did yesterday’s sanctions impress Russia? We hear in the sky above us and on our land that it’s not enough.”
Going an extra mile, he didn’t shy away from taking a direct hit on the NATO nations for only doing the bare minimum during the times Ukraine needs them the most-
“Who is ready to fight alongside us? I don’t see anyone,” he said. “Who is ready to give Ukraine a guarantee of NATO membership? Everyone is afraid.”
“I need ammunitions, not ride.”
The United States has often come across as a weak alliance when war-stricken countries have needed combat support. However, given the superpower status, nations hardly bring it to an honest, straightforward confrontation. Zelenskyy, however, has turned the tide.
As a solidarity measure, U.S. President Joe Biden offered the president of Ukraine, a safe evacuation from the country. However, Zelenskyy turned down the offer in the words that took over the social media soon-
“The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride.”
The statement came out despite knowing well about the intentions of the Russian forces-
“According to our information, the enemy marked me as target No. 1, my family – as target No. 2,” Zelensky said Thursday. “They want to destroy Ukraine politically by destroying the head of state. We have information that enemy sabotage groups have entered Kyiv.”
Soon, the Good Samaritan of the Ukraine became a global hero- the image curcial to igniting a passion among his people and motivating the West to level up their commitment to soveriegnity.
What started as a comedian elected as president, ended up uniting the world against authoritarianism
The entire act of defiance against Russian forces has turned the 44 years old president into one of the most beloved war leaders of all times. The western media was already running an efficient anti-Russian propaganda throughout both, television networks and social media. However, it was President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s heroic measures during the war that really turned the world against Vladimir Putin.
All of it together has successfully fetched the indifferent parties out of their comfort zones. Switzerland, for example, gave up its traditional status of neutrality for the first time in decades to support the sanctions against Russia.
European Union, on the other hand, finally decided to keep aside the internal disagreements of letting Ukraine join the group. On March 1, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy filed the formal application to join the E.U. As the commander-in-chief of the country, Zelenskyy is rising to the moment.
The winning presidency- About Volodymyr Zelenskyy
Zelenskyy came to power in the year 2019 famously for his anti-corruption campaigns that won him landslide victory. Born to Jewish parents in the southern city of Ukraine, Kryvyy. He graduated with a law degree in 2000 from Kyiv National Economic University.
However, quite contrasting to his qualification background, Zelenskyy made his way to the acting career. He soon became a well known face on KVN (Klub vesyólykh i nakhódchivykh; “Club of the Funny and Inventive People.”
He later went on to cofound Studio Kvartal 95, one of the most successful product and entertainment studios of Ukraine. Consequently, he served as the general producer of the Ukrainian television channel Inter TV.
He first made a strong political imagery before the public when a student recorded him passionately speaking against the corrupt regime of Ukraine.
When Volodymyr Zelenskyy finally decided to step into the presidential race, the space for candidacy was pretty crowded. The reason was high corruption and tanking approval rating of Poroshenko. However, the television star emerged as a clear winner. The major reason was the unorthodox campaign amid social conditions where cynicism against conservatism was brimming.
On April 21, 2019 he was finally elected as the President of Ukraine with a staggering 73 percent majority.
