Zelenskyy calls for unity at time when Ukraine "seizes initiative"

Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s leader, has called on fellow Ukrainians to act effectively and in a united manner, as was the case in the first weeks and months of this war when Ukraine "took the initiative and began to turn the tide [on the battlefield] to the benefit of our state." 

Source: Zelenskyy's address on August 13 

Quote: "And now all of us in Ukraine should act as unitedly and efficiently as we did in the first weeks and months of this war, when Ukraine took the initiative and began to turn the situation to the benefit of our state. Now we have done the exact same thing – we have proven once again that we, Ukrainians, are capable of achieving our goals in any situation – capable of defending our interests and our independence. And we must make full use of our achievements.  

And we will. We are paying attention to every direction of our state's defence – to all frontline directions. Donetsk region – Pokrovsk, Toretsk, Kramatorsk directions. Kharkiv region. The South. Special attention is paid to the Kursk region, and thus to the protection of all our border communities nearby." 

Details: Separately, Zelenskyy discussed with the Minister of Defence Rustem Umierov, representatives of the Verkhovna Rada (Ukrainian Parliament) and the President's office that all payments, bonuses and other things provided for the front are guaranteed and quickly provided for the soldiers who perform combat tasks on the territory of Russia. The president also thanked the military for replenishing the exchange fund for further swaps with Russia. 

Quote: "Once again, I thank all our guys who are replenishing the exchange fund – this is very important for our state. Hundreds of Russian servicemen have already surrendered, and all of them will receive humane treatment – they did not experience such treatment even in their own Russian army". 

Background:

• On the morning of 6 August, the Russians claimed that Ukrainian forces had mounted an attempt to infiltrate Kursk Oblast, Russia. Russian propagandists and military bloggers are claiming that Ukrainian forces have secured a foothold in the border area. Russian ruler Vladimir Putin called the situation a "provocation".
• On 9 August, Russia’s Ministry of Defence issued a statement on the situation in Kursk Oblast, acknowledging that Ukrainian forces were on the outskirts of the town of Sudzha.
• On 13 August, Oleksandr Syrskyi, Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, informed Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, that Ukraine’s defence forces were in control of 74 settlements in Russia’s Kursk Oblast.
• Alexei Smirnov, acting Governor of Kursk Oblast in Russia, said that civilians evacuated from Kursk Oblast would be relocated to the Russian-occupied territory of Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Oblast.

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