Speech before the British House of Commons Selenskyj is combative – and quotes Churchill
3/8/2022, 8:27 p.m
The Ukrainian President Zelenskyj tirelessly seeks the support of the West in the fight against the invading Russians. In a speech to the British House of Commons he alludes to Churchill and Shakespeare – Premier Johnson is enthusiastic.
In his video address to the British House of Commons, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy invoked his country’s fighting spirit and asked London for further support. He also referred to a famous speech by British Prime Minister Winston Churchill during World War II. “We will not surrender and we will not lose. We will fight to the end, at sea and in the air. We will continue to fight for our Fight on land, whatever the cost. We will fight in the forests and in the fields, on the coasts, in the towns and villages, in the streets and on the hills,” said Zelenskyy. In his famous “We Shall Fight on the Beaches” speech in June 1940, Churchill prepared Britain for war against Germany. “We will go to the end,” he said at the time, adding: “We will defend our island, whatever the cost. We will fight on the beaches, we will fight on the landing places, we will fight on the… Fight in the fields and in the streets, we will fight in the hills. We will never surrender.”
“To be or not to be”
Zelenskyi also alluded to William Shakespeare’s play “Hamlet” in his speech. In view of the Russian attack, Ukraine is dealing with the Shakespearean question “To be or not to be,” said the Ukrainian President, who was connected via video call from Kyiv. In view of the tenacious resistance of his compatriots against the Russian army, he could now give a definitive answer. “It is definitely: his,” said Zelenskyj. Among other things, he hopes that Great Britain will impose further sanctions on the Russian economy and that Russia will be classified as a terrorist state, said the Ukrainian President. He also renewed calls for a ban on flying over Ukraine. Selenskyj also lamented the civilian casualties of the war over the past two weeks. 50 children have already died as a result of the Russian attack. The speech was received with great applause by the deputies. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said after Zelenskyy’s speech that the House of Commons had never heard such a speech before. The British prime minister said that Ukraine would be supported with arms and sanctions and all diplomatic, humanitarian and economic means to thwart Russian President Vladimir Putin’s plan to subjugate the country.
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