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Today, February 24, 2026, on the fourth anniversary of the full-scale invasion of the Russian Federation, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressed online the participants of a special session of the European Parliament. He emphasized that Russia is a mentally unstable dictatorship. This was reported by UATV English with reference to the broadcast of the address.
“There are many dictatorships in the world. Some of them isolate themselves within their borders, trying to block any external influence of freedom. Others do not recognize borders at all and actively try to destroy the freedom of their neighbors, entire regions, and sometimes even the whole world. In the case of Russia, we are dealing with the second type of threat. This is a mentally unstable dictatorship,” the president emphasized.
Russia, he believes, cannot accept that in Europe every life matters, that human rights matter, and that nations can be protected regardless of whether they are big or small.
“Putin cannot accept one simple truth — that somewhere people can live differently and enjoy a life different from the one he prefers. That is why he constantly tries to break someone — not only now, not only these four years, but throughout his entire time in power. He is the war itself. And everyone who supports Putin cannot fail to understand that they are choosing war,” the head of the Ukrainian state emphasized.
The head of state made this appeal during his online address to the European Parliament on the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on EU countries to ban all participants in Russia’s aggression from entering or staying anywhere in Europe.
“Each of you understands what fills Putin’s wallet with money and allows him to prolong these wars. There should be no place in the free world for Russian oil, Russian tankers, Russian banks, sanctions evasion, or any Russian war criminals. The time has come to completely ban all participants in Russian aggression from the entire territory of Europe,” Zelenskyy said.
He stressed that Russians must understand that “Europe is not land for the villas of Russian oligarchs, not a museum for the mistresses of Russian officials who come to admire beauty, and not a vacation destination for Russian murderers.”
“Russians must understand that Europe is a union of independent nations and millions of people who do not tolerate humiliation and will not accept violence,” the President said.
He urged continued protection of the European way of life and support for Ukraine.
“Support our diplomacy for peace and be effective. Every result you achieve is a line that Putin cannot cross,” Zelenskyy noted.
In his address, he also expressed gratitude for the EU’s decision to allocate €90 billion in support for Ukraine.
“This is a real financial guarantee of our security and resilience, and it must be implemented. I thank everyone working to make this happen,” Zelenskyy said.
He also mentioned the need for a clear date for Ukraine’s accession to the European Union to be included in a peace agreement.
“This is not just a wish. It is a clear understanding of how Putin will act if such a date is not set. If there is no such guarantee, he will find a way to block Ukraine for decades, dividing you, dividing Europe,” the President stated.
As reported, 11 high-level foreign guests arrived in Kyiv to take part in events marking the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion, including EU leaders and heads of Nordic and Baltic states. Many other countries and organizations were represented at different levels.
Four years ago, on February 24, 2022, Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. At approximately 3:40 a.m., the first column of Russian tanks entered the Luhansk region, while Ukrainians in many cities awoke to the first enemy missile strikes.
Over four years of full-scale war, Ukraine has inflicted significant losses on Russia in personnel, weapons, and military equipment.
According to Ukraine’s General Staff, total Russian combat losses in Ukraine from February 24, 2022, to February 24, 2026, amount to approximately 1,261,420 personnel.
Read also: Russia Has Attacked Ukraine’s Energy System 5,796 Times in Four Years — Shmyhal
