Ukrainian President Declares “Day of Unity” and New Measures Amidst Invasion Fears
Ukrainian President Volodmyr Zelensky announced on Monday he had signed a decree for Wednesday to be a “day of unity” to rally Ukrainian spirits. According to presidential spokesperson Sergii Nykyforov and advisor Mykhailo Podoliak, the choice of date is a tongue in cheek reference to recent media reporting attempting to predict a date for the start of a Russian invasion.
In a televised address subsequently uploaded to his official Facebook page, the Ukrainian President said that the Ukrainian flag would be raised on government buildings on Wednesday, the national anthem would be played nationwide at 10AM, and citizens should don Ukrainian blue-and-yellow ribbons “to show the world our unity”.
Zelensky’s statement follows comments by American and British officials over the past week that a Russian military buildup on Russia and Belarus’ borders with Ukraine was now at the point where a new invasion could be conducted with no notice. However, Pentagon Press Secretary John Kirby declined to comment on Zelensky’s address, responding to reporter inquiries that “(Zelensky) can post on Facebook what he wants and when he wants” during a press conference later on Monday.
In the address, Zelensky noted that this was not the first threat faced by Ukraine, saying that the Ukrainian military’s “unique” combat experience and modern weapons placed it in a better situation than it was in 2014. He also stated that Kyiv enjoyed extensive diplomatic support, with a series of visits by foreign officials planned for this week, and had sufficient financial support to stabilize Ukraine’s financial system.
The decree calls for Zelensky’s cabinet to approve a salary raise of 30 percent for Ukrainian troops, which would take effect from March 1. The State Border Guard Service and National Guard will also see a pay raise of 20 percent if approved. Additionally, the decree seeks to accelerate the expansion of newly-formed territorial defense forces, provisioning more resources to train civilians to augment regular Ukrainian troops.
Also ordered by the decree is the creation of a “single information platform”, which is to “provide daily information to the public about the real state of the security situation, measures taken to strengthen the state’s defense capabilities, as well as the organization of appropriate informational and explanatory work on public safety”.
Earlier on Monday, Zelensky had met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, with Scholz announcing that Germany would be providing Ukraine with a loan of 150 million euros. In a press conference following the meeting, Zelensky stressed that Ukrainian aspirations to join NATO remained unchanged. The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry had stated prior to Zelensky’s comments that the Ukrainian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, Vadym Prystaiko, had been “quoted out of context” after he told BBC Radio 5 on Sunday that Ukraine “might” consider dropping its NATO aspirations if it doing so would avoid a war with Russia.