Zelenskyy clarifies that he called for preventive sanctions against Russia, not strikes on its territory

EUROPEAN PRAVDA – FRIDAY, 7 OCTOBER 2022, 21:47

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for preventive sanctions against Russia in response to the efforts of Russian officials to "prepare their society" for the possible use of nuclear weapons.

Source: European Pravda, quoting Zelenskyy’s interview with BBC

Details: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denied having urged strikes on Russia, claiming that an earlier remark had been mistranslated.

"After that translation, they [the Russians] did things their way, the way that’s useful to them, and began to retranslate it in other directions."

"You must use preventive kicks," Zelenskyy said, referring to sanctions, "not attacks".

Zelenskyy believes the fact that Russia has begun "preparing [its] society" for a possible nuclear strike on Ukraine is dangerous.

"That's very dangerous. They are not ready to do it, to use it. But they begin to communicate. They don't know whether they'll use it or not. I think it's dangerous to even speak about it," he added.

President Zelenskyy believes that Vladimir Putin is not afraid of a possible nuclear strike but of his community, and his people. "Because only those people are capable of replacing him now, to take away his power and give it to someone else," he explained.

Previously: During an online video address at the Lowy Institute (Australia), President Zelenskyy said that NATO countries can deter Russia from using nuclear weapons by carrying out "preventive [kicks/strikes/attacks; the word in Ukrainian is "удар", which can have a number of literal and figurative meanings - ed.]".

The initial comment was taken up by the Russian propaganda apparatus, which started saying that Zelenskyy called on NATO to carry out nuclear strikes on Russia. However, a spokesman for the Ukrainian president clarified that Zelenskyy meant preventative sanctions against Russia. 

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