Klitschko flew to Austria – “we need help” – Ukraine
Vitali Klitschko, Mayor of Kyiv, does not want to flee Ukraine despite the Russian bombing. Now he is asking Austria for help.
“I would like to introduce myself to our army, our soldiers, they are real heroes,” said Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko in an interview with ORF reporter Christian Wehrschütz, which was broadcast on “ZiB 2” late Friday evening. The Russians wanted to take over Kyiv in just two weeks, but “our soldiers are defending our city, our country.” According to the mayor, women and children have been evacuated from the city, but there are still around two million people in Kyiv: “The city is not just about buildings, but about the peaceful people here.”
Peaceful people put on a uniform and took up arms because they were ready to defend their families and friends, “our country and our peace”. According to Klitschko, there are food and medicine reserves for several weeks, but he is now also asking Austria for help: “The war has destroyed the entire infrastructure, we need help, we need support.” A no-fly zone would be necessary, according to Klitschko, because the Russians would be bombing hospitals and residential buildings. “This is a war against the principles of the modern world. A meaningless war that affects every European.” Klitschko doesn’t want to flee: “Kyiv is our home, our past and our future.”
“This is the first TikTok war we’ve seen”
Major General Günther Hofbauer gave a new assessment of the Ukraine war in “ZiB 2”. “Obviously” things didn’t go the way the Russians had imagined in the Kyiv area. The Russians would face the challenge of wanting to take over a city of 3 million people, but they shy away from massive destruction like in Mariupol or Charkiv. At the same time, the Russians would have died, but probably not enough troops to completely encircle the city. Now a “tactic of attrition” against the population is probably being used.
According to Hofbauer, it was “surprising that so long after the start of the war Ukraine is still able to get combat aircraft into the air.” If Russia launched an attack, the air force would also be used accordingly, said the major general. He is not currently assuming the use of chemical or nuclear weapons, it is a “war of words” on “the level of Russia versus the USA”. According to Hofbauer, the first “TikTok war” is also being observed in Ukraine. Much more information would come here via social media than is currently available from the authorities. The advantage for Ukraine: the Ukrainians would see from videos of ambushes that their troops had not given up.