‘Life has a chance to win’ in Ukraine thanks to the world’s media attention, President Zelensky says as he praises British journalists’ coverage of the war

• Zelensky thanked British journalists for continued coverage of Russia’s invasion 
• Ukrainian President said Ukraine ‘needs world’s attention even more than before’ 

Volodymyr Zelensky has said that ‘life has a chance to win’ in Ukraine thanks to the world’s media attention as he praised British journalists for their coverage of Russia’s invasion. 

In a keynote address to the Society of Editors Media Freedom Conference in London on Wednesday, Zelensky said Ukraine ‘needs the world’s attention even more than before’. 

The Ukrainian president urged more reporters to travel to the country to ‘spread the truth about the Russian aggression, support our defence, and give Ukrainian life worth’.

He told representatives of the British media that the country had issued over 15,000 accreditations to foreign journalists since the beginning of the conflict.

Speaking in a pre-recorded address, Zelensky said: ‘Now that Russia’s full-scale war has been going on more than a year, Ukraine needs the world’s attention even more than before.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said that ‘life has a chance to win’ in Ukraine thanks to the world’s media attention as he praised British journalists for their coverage of Russia’s invasion

Members of the Ukrainian special unit gather in the woods, near Bachmut, in the region of Donbas, on March 15

A Ukrainian special unit member checks and prepares his weapon in the woods, near Bachmut, in the region of Donbas, on March 15

‘Life as such, needs the attention of the world – the attention of journalists and policy makers, public leaders and every community, every nation that values freedom.

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‘Now more than ever, your ability is needed to bring words to life.’

Zelensky said he had opened up Ukraine to the ‘maximum number eyes’ for the ‘world to see’ what was happening during the conflict.

The Ukrainian president said he wanted the world to know about ‘every crime committed by the Russian occupiers of the Ukrainian soil so it does not pass without a trace.’

He continued: ‘This is needed for Ukraine to say we can win, for Ukrainians to say we can restore justice.

‘So that the terrorist state feels that it will be punished, so that our partners in the world hear that Ukraine is grateful for the support and help, and so that the world knows, thanks to the fact that you friends support Ukraine today, life will gain protection for generations to come.

‘No one potential aggressor in the world will ever dare to start another similar war if the story of the Ukrainian victory will be heard globally, if responsibility for war crimes against Ukrainians becomes inevitable for any of the Russians – from the top to the mere performers – and if the Ukrainian land emerges from the ruins of the war.

‘For all this, the truth is important.

‘So I urge you to come to Ukraine, and spread the truth about the Russian aggression, support our defence, and give Ukrainian life worth.

‘Thanks to all of you, dear British, for your vital support. Glory to all while fighting for freedom. Slava Ukraini.’

The one-day event, held at the Leonardo Royal Hotel in London, brought together more than 150 editors and journalists from across the UK news media industry. 

In Ukraine, Ukrainian forces are today continuing to defend the city of Bakhmut against an onslaught of Russian soldiers and artillery fire.

Ukrainian soldiers walk along a street in the area of the heaviest battles with the Russian invaders in Bakhmut, Donetsk region, Ukraine, on Wednesday

Russian forces – led by the private Wagner militia – have been trying to encircle and capture the eastern Ukrainian city for months in what has turned into one of the bloodiest battles of the year-long war.

Russia, which refers to the city by its Soviet-era name of Artyomovsk, says capturing the city will allow it to launch more offensives deeper into Ukrainian territory which it says it is fighting to ‘liberate’.

‘The situation in Artyomovsk remains complex and difficult,’ Denis Pushilin, the Russian-installed head of Ukraine’s Donetsk region, said in an interview on state TV on Thursday.

‘That is, we do not see that there is any premise that the enemy is going to simply withdraw units,’ he added.

Wagner head Yevgeny Prigozhin has said his forces are in control of practically half the city and only one exit road remains available to Ukraine. 

Zelensky has repeatedly said he will not withdraw his forces from Bakhmut, even as Kyiv and Western officials have downplayed the strategic significance of the city, which has been decimated by months of artillery shelling and urban combat. 

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