Photo: Gisela Schober/Getty
Kyiv MayorVitali Klitschkohas been a steadfast presence in his hometown — and a fierce defender of his country — sinceRussia invaded Ukrainein February.
Theformer heavyweight world champion boxer, 50, tellsThe Washington Postin a story published Sunday that his priority as the top city official now is simple but not easy: “save the lives of citizens of our city.”
It’s a “mission” Klitschko said that he didn’t anticipate. “We did not prepare well because nobody believed in that,” he said, referring to a threat coming from Russian PresidentVladimir Putinwho ordered troops to cross into Ukraine on Feb. 24.
After that, Klitschko said, “We had to defend our country.”
“We all stand together and we’re highly motivated to defend our country because this is our home,” Wladimir, 46, said during one of the brothers’joint interviewsto international press in March.
During their professional boxing careers, the two brothers — the mayor was known as “Dr. Ironfist” and his brother was nicknamed “Dr. Steelhammer” — never faced off in the ring, keeping a promise made to their mother, according to thePost.
Instead, they’ve referred to their bond as a “secret weapon” to use against their adversaries. And what was true in boxing remains true in the war with Russia.
Kyiv, Ukraine, Mayor Vitali Klitschko.GENYA SAVILOV/AFP via Getty
As the mayor leads his city through the crisis from the streets, the younger Klitschko has traveled to Germany, where both lived and worked, to push for more resources for Ukraine.
As a superstar in his corner of the sports world (who also has an endurance and health foods brand), Wladimir raised more than $100 million in the first weeks of the war. The money was intended for humanitarian aid and medical supplies, he told PEOPLE last month.
“I’m very happy my brother uses his status and international contacts” to find funding for the war effort, Mayor Klitschko told thePost. “My brother supports me very much.”
Russia’sattack on Ukrainecontinues after their forces launched a large-scale invasion on Feb. 24 — the first major land conflict in Europe in decades.
More than 4 million have fled the country as refugees — and half are children,according to the United Nations. Millions more have been displaced inside Ukraine.
With NATO forces amassed in the region, various countries are offering aid or military support to the resistance. Zelenskyy has called for peace talks — so far unsuccessful — while urging his country to fight back.
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Putin insists Ukraine has historic ties to Russia and he is acting in the best security interests of his country. Zelenskyy vowed not to bend.
“Nobody is going to break us, we’re strong, we’re Ukrainians,“he told the European Unionin a speech in the early days of the fighting, adding, “Life will win over death. And light will win over darkness.”
source: people.com
