President Volodymyr Zelensky on Feb. 24 thanked Ukrainians for their efforts to resist Russia's full-scale invasion.
"Any normal person wants the war to end. But none of us will allow our Ukraine to end," Zelensky said in a video marking the two-year anniversary of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Zelensky met with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo, and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the site of the 2022 battle for Hostomel Airport in Kyiv Oblast.
The Western leaders arrived in Kyiv by train earlier on Feb. 24 to show their ongoing wartime support for Ukraine.
"Two years ago, we greeted the enemy landing here with fire. Two years later, we greet our friends, our partners here," Zelensky said of Hostomel, noting the symbolism behind the location.
Russian forces failed to capture the airport in 2022 and it was there that the plan to "take Kyiv in three days" ultimately failed.
"Every (Ukrainian) has their own Feb. 24 – a unique memory of that day," Zelensky continued. "And most importantly what (they) did next."
Zelensky went on to say that he is "incredibly proud" of what every Ukrainian has managed to accomplish in the past two years and thanked Ukraine's allies "who stand by us with truth."
"We are 730 days closer to victory," he said. "And we will win."
The Kyiv Independent news desk
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