Russia Strikes Kyiv TV Tower; Volodymyr Zelensky Tells CNN “I’m Not Iconic…Ukraine Is Iconic”

Russia struck a TV tower in Ukraine on Tuesday, dealing a temporary blow to the country’s communications infrastructure.

“For a while, the channels will not work. In the near future, the backup broadcast of some channels will be included. The enemy can spread fakes in order to destabilize the situation. You know, Ukraine is fighting and enduring!” according to the translation of a tweet sent by the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense.

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Ukrainian authorities said five people were killed in the strike on the tower, according to the AP.

The tower was near a memorial to the Holocaust where, during World War II, Nazis shot more than 70,000 people. That included nearly all of the Jewish population of Kyiv. Ukrainian officials said that the Babyn Yar memorial site was struck as well.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on Twitter, “To the world: what is the point of saying «never again» for 80 years, if the world stays silent when a bomb drops on the same site of Babyn Yar? At least 5 killed. History repeating…”

УВАГА‼️
Попадання в апаратну мовника на телевежі.
Якийсь час, канали не будуть працювати.
Найближчим часом буде включено резервне мовлення частини каналів.
Ворог може поширювати фейки з метою дестабілізації ситуації. Знайте, Україна бореться і вистоїть!#stoprussia pic.twitter.com/WE5iQAJG0z

— Defence of Ukraine (@DefenceU) March 1, 2022

Meanwhile, CNN’s Matthew Chance and Reuters landed an interview with Zelensky, who said that talks with Moscow hinged on whether the Russian attacks stopped. “Everybody has to stop fighting and to go to that point from where it began” five or six days ago, he said in English.

“Do you think you are wasting your time, or do you think you’re ready?” Chance asked him.

“We’ll see,” Zelensky said.

Chance said that Zelensky was in a secret location in the center of Kyiv. He said that they had to first meet with Ukrainian troops who took them by their vehicle to the basement of a building in the city center, down long and dark corridors lined with sandbags, he said.

Zelensky also was asked about his elevated status in the face of the invasion, as he had been a comic actor who is now the face of Ukraine’s resistance.

“It’s very serious, it’s not a movie … I’m not iconic, I think Ukraine is iconic,” he said, per CNN.

Zelensky has decided to stay in the Ukrainian capital, even though he believes he is target No. 1 of the Russians, Chance said.

News reports have centered on the presence of a 40-mile long convoy of Russian tanks and other vehicles that are poised to advance on Kyiv.

As #russia is poised to attack #kyiv, i spoke with #ukraine president #Zelenskyy in his bunker. Watch #cnn for more pic.twitter.com/pqFCrIgtKd

— Matthew Chance (@mchancecnn) March 1, 2022