Ukraine: President Zelensky visits Mykolayev and Odessa for first time

LAST UPDATE: 20.02

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who rarely leaves Kyiv after the Russian invasion of his country, visited today for the first time the areas of Mykolayev and Odessa in the Black Sea.

A video released by the Ukrainian presidency shows him inspecting a damaged apartment building and attending a meeting with local officials in Mykolayev. This city, which had a population of about 500,000 before the war, remains under Ukrainian control but is located very close to Kherson, which is almost completely occupied by the Russians. It is also considered a target for Moscow because it is located on the road to Odessa, the largest Ukrainian port, 130 km away.

Two people were killed and 20 were injured in a Russian bomb blast in the city on Friday.

In the video, Nikolaev’s governor Vitaly Kim shows Zelensky the facade of the local administration building, which was bombed by the Russians in March, killing 37 people.

Zelensky then visited Ukrainian army positions in the area as well as in neighboring Odessa, according to the presidency’s press office. “I want to thank you on behalf of the Ukrainian people, on behalf of our state, for your great work, for your heroic service,” he told soldiers in Odessa. “It is important that you stay alive. As long as you are alive, a Ukrainian wall protects our country,” he said.

Zelensky also attended a meeting of local authorities in Mykolajev, in an area that looks like an underground shelter and awarded medals to the men of the armed forces.

He also visited a hospital in Mykolayev and awarded honors to Mayor Oleksandr Senkevich and Governor Vitaly Kim for their work during the four months of the Russian invasion, his office said in a separate statement.