by Andrew Korybko
It’s clear that he’s insecure about his people’s support for indefinitely perpetuating this proxy war as well as his patron’s continued backing. The whole thing reeks of desperation, ergo the emphasis on emotional appeals. He didn’t intend to, but he also drew a target over his entire country by claiming that every member of society is a part of his “war”.
Zelensky isn’t known for ever saying much of substance, and his New Year’s address wasn’t an exception. It was just one gigantic emotional appeal to Ukrainians that reveals a lot about his side’s insecurities when reading between the lines. Large parts of it were just him listing off the names of Ukrainian cities in the hopes of motivating their residents to keep fighting, but others inadvertently said much more than he intended.
For instance, early on he ranted that “This year can be called a year of losses for Ukraine, for the whole of Europe, and the whole world. But it’s wrong. We shouldn’t say that. We haven’t lost anything. It was taken from us. Ukraine did not lose its sons and daughters – they were taken away by murderers. Ukrainians did not lose their homes – they were destroyed by terrorists. We did not lose our lands – they were occupied by invaders. The world did not lose peace – Russia destroyed it.”
In that passage, Zelensky is acknowledging that NATO’s proxy war on Russia through his country has indeed led to innumerable “losses for Ukraine, for the whole of Europe, and the whole world” despite trying to attribute them all solely to Russia. He’s also admitting that Russia still remains in control of land that Kiev claims as its own per its maximalist approach to the Ukrainian Conflict. These four observations completely contradict the “official narrative” peddled by the US-led West’s Mainstream Media.
When he implored that “at the moment, when it seems that you can’t go any further, remember that we have already passed with you”, the Ukrainian leader was reacting to those of his compatriots who realized that they’re just pawns in the New Cold War’s top proxy war for determining the course of the global systemic transition. He knows that they don’t see any reason to continue fighting, hence why he sought to encourage them to carry on with his emotional appeals.
These included perhaps the most damning admission that any leader has ever made during a conflict. According to Zelensky, “Everyone is important in war. Who holds a weapon, the steering wheel of a car, the helm of a ship or plane, a scalpel, or a pointer. Everyone who is behind a laptop, who drives a combine harvester, a train. Who is at a roadblock and a power plant. Journalists and diplomats, utility workers and rescuers.”
Without realizing it, the Ukrainian leader basically argued that all the aforesaid folks are supposedly legitimate targets. Not only that, but he’s tacitly admitting that the SBU does indeed manage a fascist troll network when praising the role of “everyone who is behind a laptop”. His reference to “utility workers” also being “important in war” shows that Russia shouldn’t be faulted for targeting certain infrastructure that aids its enemy’s military aggression.
His praise of “journalists” can be interpreted as both an acknowledgement of the role that information warfare in his side’s support has played in the conflict thus far as well as his belief that his enemy’s journalists are legitimate targets for the same reason. This is likely the closest that Kiev will ever come to confirming the Washington Post’s unnamed US official sources who told them in October that their government blames its proxies for the terrorist assassination of Russian journalist Darya Dugina.
Removing all ambiguity about his total war mindset, Zelensky declared that “There are no small matters in a great war. There are no unnecessary ones. Each of us is a fighter. Each of us is a front. Each of us is the basis of the defense.” This leaves no doubt to the abovementioned observation related to his full militarization of society, which technically means that no one is a civilian anymore and can therefore be legitimately targeted even though Russia continues focusing only on traditional military-related targets.
The last part of his speech where he inadvertently touched upon something that he shouldn’t was when he said that “The world heard Ukraine. European Parliament, Bundestag, the UK Parliament, Knesset, the US Congress. The world felt Ukraine. Ukraine in the media. In the hearts of people. At the top of Google search. The world saw Ukraine. On the main squares in Toronto, New York, London, Warsaw, Florence, Sydney, and other cities.”
The preceding passage shows how much importance he pays to his scheduled appearances and the role that he believes they play in bolstering Ukrainians’ spirits.