(Photo: Dmytro Larin/Shutterstock)
Honor: President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky was chosen as the American “Time” magazine’s man of the year, this against the background of the war that broke out in his country last February following the Russian invasion of the country. The cover of the magazine published today (Wednesday) states that the man of the year is “Vladimir Zelensky and the spirit of the Ukrainian nation”.
“Zelensky’s success as a war leader rested on the fact that courage is contagious,” wrote journalist Simon Schuster. “The courage of the Ukrainian people increased as soon as they realized that the president stayed and fought with them. Although it sounds like a natural thing to do, but think about the historical precedents. Only half a year before, the president of Afghanistan fled from Kabul when the Taliban forces arrived. In 2014, Zelensky’s predecessor, Viktor Yanukovych ‘, fled from Kiev when the protesters stormed his home, and he still lives in Russia today.”
“Even in World War II, the leaders of many countries – among them Albania, Belgium, Czechoslovakia, Greece, Poland, the Netherlands, and Norway – fled from the advance of the Nazi army and spent the war in exile,” he added. “There was nothing in Zelensky’s biography that hinted at his readiness to stay and fight for his country. He never served in the army or was interested in its conduct, and he was president only from 2019 – before that he was an actor, a comedian, and a film producer. But precisely these talents were an advantage when the war broke out.”
“Zelensky was skilled in flexibility and knew how to keep calm under pressure. He also knew how to read the audience and respond to their feelings and expectations,” he concluded. “Now, his audience is the whole world – and he was determined not to disappoint them. As a result, many Ukrainians took anything that could be used as a weapon, and wanted to defend their country instead of fleeing for their lives.”
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