Constitution Square in KharkivKYIV, Jan 24The mayor of Kiev, Vitali Klitschko, said that there would be no capture of Kharkiv by Russia, according to him, he is gathering the board of the Association of Ukrainian Cities on Friday to discuss measures to organize territorial defense in the regions. Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with The Washington Post that the invasion of the Russian Federation may occur in large cities of Ukraine under the pretext of protecting the Russian-speaking population, in particular, Kharkiv may be «occupied». Press Secretary of the President of Ukraine Serhiy Nikiforov, commenting on Zelensky's words, said that «it was just an example, a hypothetical scenario.» In turn, Kharkiv Mayor Igor Terekhov urged Kharkiv residents not to panic after Zelensky’s statements and assured that the city was ready to fight back.Avakov reacted sharply to Zelensky's statement about the «occupation» of Kharkov «Against the background of the discussion in recent days of statements regarding the allegedly probable seizure of Kharkov by the Russian aggressor, as chairman of the association of Ukrainian cities, on behalf of the association, I want to express support and conviction to the city of Kharkov and the entire Kharkov region that there is no there will be no capture, because the whole of Ukraine is behind Kharkov!” — Klitschko wrote in Telegram. He noted that today, clear coordination of actions, joint work and a unified position of local and central authorities are very important for the protection of Ukraine. «Therefore, I initiated a meeting of the board of the Association of Ukrainian Cities, at which we will discuss measures to organize the territorial defense of each region, each city. This meeting will be held on January 28 in Kiev,» the mayor said. more effective exercise of their powers, coordination of actions to protect the rights and interests of territorial communities, promotion of their socio-economic and cultural development. The association includes 969 territorial communities, including villages, towns, small, medium and large cities. for Zelensky's words about «occupation», Russia has repeatedly rejected accusations of the West and Ukraine of «aggressive actions», stating that it does not threaten anyone and is not going to attack anyone, and statements about «Russian aggression» are used as a pretext to deploy more military NATO equipment near Russian borders. The Russian Foreign Ministry previously noted that Western statements about «Russian aggression» and the possibility of helping Kiev defend itself against it are both ridiculous and dangerous. At the same time, Kiev and Western states have recently expressed concern about the alleged increase in «aggressive actions» sides of Russia near the borders of Ukraine. Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov said that Russia is moving troops within its territory and at its own discretion. According to him, this does not threaten anyone and should not bother anyone.
