Nine O’Clock Grocery Store｜Two Years of the Russia-Ukraine War, 20 Moments

Two years have passed, and Ukraine is still resilient.

01. On the eve of the war, Zelensky delivered a televised speech. This was also Zelensky’s last time wearing a suit in public.

On February 23, 2022, on the eve of the “storm,” Zelensky delivered a televised speech in Russian, wanting to explain to the Russian people that Ukraine was not Russia’s enemy.

Zelensky said, “War is a terrible misfortune, in any sense. … Most importantly: people lose their loved ones and themselves.”

However, what was supposed to happen, happened, and it did not stop because of Zelensky’s speech. The next day (February 24, 2022), Russia announced a special military operation in the Donbas region, and Ukraine declared a state of war.

02. Should Ukraine be aided? Western countries are hesitant. Zelensky said, “We are not afraid.”

Zelensky refused to leave Ukraine and said the famous words: “I don’t want a ride, give me ammunition!”

However, should Ukraine be aided? The United States and Western countries such as Britain and France hesitated. Zelensky said that he asked 27 leaders of Western countries whether Ukraine could join NATO, but no one answered, they were all afraid.

Ukraine is not a member of NATO. If it does not get strong aid, how long can Ukraine last? Three days, five days, a month? No one knows.

The silence of the West, the precarious situation, Zelensky came to a difficult moment.

On February 24, 2022, in his speech, Zelensky calmly and firmly stated: “But we are not afraid, we are not afraid of anything, we are not afraid to defend our country, we are not afraid of Russia, we are not afraid to talk about anything, we are not afraid to talk…”

03. Ukrainian female writer Iryna Tsvila sacrificed

Iryna Tsvila was a retired military officer and the mother of 5 children. She had created many excellent works such as “The Voice of War” and “Stories of Veterans.” “The Girl Who Cut Her Hair” won the Shevchenko Prize, which is the highest award for Ukrainian national culture and art.

After the war began, Tsvila, who was 52 years old, posted on social media: “Who is willing to help defend Kyiv?” Then, Tsvila decided to join the army and return to the military. Four days later, Tsvila was killed in a fierce battle with Russian troops on the outskirts of Kyiv.

Tsvila loved photography and growing roses. Like most women, Tsvila loved beauty. In order to defend her motherland, she unreservedly dedicated her heart and blood to the land she loved. Tsvila once wrote a poem:

I came out of the military camp,

With a blue and yellow flower,

Goodbye, I’m going to the front!

Maybe I won’t return,

With a blue and yellow flower,

The blue sky has freedom there;

The golden sunflowers are the national flower!

Goodbye, I hear the sound of guns,

Maybe I won’t return,

With a blue and yellow flower

………

Tsvila sacrificed, she could no longer see her beloved blue and yellow flowers, but her poem is almost a household name in Ukraine today, inspiring Ukrainians’ tenacious fighting spirit and also pricking people’s love for peace.

04. Rumors spread: “Zelensky has fled Ukraine.” Zelensky posted a video to clarify

The war is ongoing, and although Western countries have voiced support for Ukraine, they have not taken any practical action. There were rumors that “Zelensky has fled Ukraine.”

On March 8, 2022, Zelensky released a video, saying that he was still in Kyiv. He also said in the video: “It’s snowing in Kyiv, this spring is as sad as this war, but everything will be fine…”

05. The girl singing in the air-raid shelter in Mariupol

In May 2022, when Mariupol was heavily besieged, 22-year-old Ukrainian female soldier Kateryna sang in an air-raid shelter, encouraging people not to give up. This scene also moved countless people. There are two lines of lyrics:

Because tears have not given people freedom

And the fighters get peace

On September 21, 2022, Kateryna returned to Ukraine in an exchange of prisoners. After returning to her country, Ukrainian President Zelensky awarded Kateryna a medal to commend her bravery in defending the Azovstal steel plant in the Battle of Mariupol.

06. Graduation prom on the ruins

June 2022 was also the graduation season for students. 16-year-old Ukrainian girl Valerie returned to her bombed-out alma mater to take graduation photos, which was her wish.

Unexpectedly, the war came, and the school was destroyed.

Valerie studied at School No. 134 in Kharkiv, Ukraine. On June 6, 2022, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs shared a video on social media of students from Kharkiv School No. 134 dancing a waltz at their alma mater.

In the video, in front of the abandoned basketball court, with their backs to the charred walls and broken windows, the girls wore black skirts and the boys wore white shirts and black pants. They danced together, dancing a waltz to bid farewell to the school. Parents were filming on the side, and Valerie was also in the dance team.

07. Ukrainian First Lady Zelenska gave a speech to the US Congress, requesting weapons aid

On July 20, 2022, Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska appeared in the US Congress with a look of vicissitudes, showing the losses suffered by Ukraine to the members of Congress, and requesting the United States to provide more weapons aid to Ukraine.

Zelenska said in her speech: “This is my request, and also my husband’s request, not as the presidential couple, but as parents’ request, because we hope that every father and every mother can tell their children, sleep peacefully, there will be no more air raids, and there will be no more missile attacks, is this too much to ask?”

Three days after Zelenska’s speech (July 22), the White House announced that the United States would provide an additional $270 million in security assistance to Ukraine, including additional HIMARS rocket systems and tactical drones.

08. Ukraine ushered in its first “National Day” in the midst of gunfire, and Zelensky issued a declaration of “Ukrainians will never be slaves”

On July 28, 2022, Zelensky said in a video speech celebrating the festival, “Ukrainians will fight for the country until the last inch of land is liberated.”

Zelensky said: “Living as a slave is not life, and relying on others is not. … That’s why we will fight for the country to the end – the last soldier, the last bullet, the last breath, not only ours, but also the enemy’s.”

09. Zelensky presented certificates to the families of the fallen Ukrainian soldiers. Behind every number of casualties, there is a broken family, and it is the eternal sadness left in the hearts of their loved ones.

The old mother with gray hair, the young wife with a sad face, and the bewildered children received the certificates from Zelensky, who was also full of grief. This picture makes people cry.

The war has cost the Ukrainian people blood and lives, and it has made the world cry. If there was no war, they could have lived happily together, playing games, sunbathing, and spending time together.

10. Zelensky gave a speech to the US Congress. Zelensky became the first couple to have both presidents give speeches in the US Congress.

On December 21, 2022, Zelensky delivered a speech at a joint session of Congress in the House of Representatives, which was Zelensky’s first visit outside of Ukraine since the war began.

In his speech, Zelensky emphasized the close ties between the United States and Ukraine, called on the United States to continue to provide financial support, and urged US lawmakers to strengthen sanctions against Russia.

When Zelensky walked onto the stage, the members of Congress stood up and applauded warmly for a long time to welcome him.

11. Ukraine refuses to negotiate “unconditionally” with Russia. Zelensky said he would never compromise.

Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to the Ukrainian presidential office, said that negotiations with the Kremlin were impossible, “only victory can end it.”

Zelensky said that he would not compromise because “any territorial compromise would make our country more vulnerable.”

12. Zelensky’s first visit to the UK, delivered a speech in the British Parliament: “Courage will eventually be rewarded with victory”

On February 8, 2023, Zelensky visited the UK and delivered a speech in the British Parliament. This was Zelensky’s first visit to the UK since the war began.

In his speech, Zelensky also specially thanked the then British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who was present and sitting under the stage, and presented a Ukrainian fighter pilot’s helmet as a gift to the Speaker of the House of Commons.

13. Ukrainian soldier Oleksandr Matsievsky was captured and faced the Russian army’s guns with generosity: “Glory to Ukraine”

A Ukrainian soldier, after being captured, faced the guns, took a puff of a cigarette, looked contemptuous, and said calmly: “Slava Ukraini (Glory to Ukraine)!”

This video has moved countless people to tears.

The soldier’s name is Oleksandr Matsievsky, from the 27th Mechanized Infantry Brigade of the Ukrainian Army.

In Kyiv, the capital of Ukraine, there is a statue of Matsievsky. On December 8, 2023, Matsievsky was awarded “Hero of Ukraine”, which is the highest honor of the Ukrainian state.

14. A Ukrainian university president’s daughter sacrificed, and her comrades-in-arms escorted her remains back home, calling her “an angel in the battlefield”

The young and beautiful girl in the photo sacrificed in a battle on the front lines of Bakhmut.

Her father is a Ukrainian university president. After the war broke out, she went to the front lines, served as a military doctor, and also served as a drone reconnaissance officer.

She was called “an angel in the battlefield” by her comrades-in-arms. Her grief-stricken comrades-in-arms escorted her remains back to Kharkiv for a farewell ceremony. Her comrades-in-arms in Kharkiv welcomed her with a grand heroic ceremony and held a gun salute for her.

She was so young and beautiful. If there was no war, she might be in love, feeling the fragrance of life, and enjoying the beauty of life.

On May 20, 2023, Kherson, Ukraine, which was under fire, welcomed a long-awaited wedding.

After the war broke out, 24-year-old Ukrainian nurse Rebecca Machorowski resolutely abandoned her original comfortable life and went to the front lines of Donbas to provide training in life-saving first aid for the troops.

Despite the chaos on the front lines and the departure of volunteers, Rebecca remained on the front lines. Rebecca said that her strength all came from the bravery and strength of the Ukrainian soldiers. She said: “If they persist tenaciously, why can’t I?”

Serhii, a soldier of the 80th Airborne Assault Brigade of the Ukrainian Army, was wounded in both legs while defending the trenches on the outskirts of Bakhmut, and had to hide in an air-raid shelter surrounded by Russian troops, waiting for rescue.

The Russian army was getting closer and closer to his position, and Serhii could hear their voices. He contacted his commander by radio and whispered the enemy’s coordinates to him, calling twice for artillery to fire at him.

After the Ukrainian army failed to rescue Serhii several times, his commander finally told him that the only way out was to crawl out himself and pray. So Serhii began to crawl, holding the radio in his left hand, and could hear the commander correcting his crawling route and encouraging him to keep crawling forward.

Fortunately, Serhii finally managed to reach the Ukrainian position.

18. British Prime Minister Sunak’s surprise visit to Kyiv, providing security guarantees to Ukraine. Zelensky: “Today is a watershed in European history.”

On January 12, 2024, British Prime Minister Sunak made a surprise visit to Kyiv and signed the “Cooperation Agreement in the Field of Security between Ukraine and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland” with Zelensky. Sunak promised that the UK would provide security support to Ukraine for the next 10 years.

Sunak said: “I am here today to convey a message: Britain will not waver. We will stand with Ukraine in its darkest moments and in the better moments to come.” Sunak compared the UK’s darkest moment in 1940 with the current situation in Ukraine, encouraging Ukrainians to persevere.

While the United States is still debating the issue of aid to Ukraine, Britain has become Ukraine’s most staunch supporter.

19. Zelensky accepted an exclusive interview with US media on the front lines

On February 21, 2024, Zelensky accepted an interview with Brett Baier, a reporter from Fox News, and the interview took place on the front lines of Kupyansk, in a deserted factory only 2.5 kilometers from the Russian army’s positions, where intense gunfire could be heard from time to time.

Zelensky has experienced many times of putting himself in danger and going to the front lines, but this was the first time he had accepted an interview on the front lines. By choosing such a dangerous place for the interview, Zelensky and the members of the Fox News team showed extremely professional courage.

20. On the 8th day after the war began, a self-media writer named Minmin Junzhu wrote an article “Zelensky Won.” Two years later, she still believes in her original judgment.