‘Ukraine wanted peace’
In a late-night televised address to the nation, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Ukraine wanted peace, but declared: “We are not afraid” and “will not give anything away to anyone”.
Kyiv needed “clear and effective actions of support” from its international partners, he said.
“It is very important to see now who our real friend and partner is, and who will continue to scare the Russian Federation with words only,” he added.
At an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council, US Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield dismissed Russia’s claims that troops would be taking on a “peacekeeping” role, saying: “We know what they really are”.
