According to insiders, Zelenskyj will arrive in the morning and will immediately leave the parliament building after his speech. Zelensky could then attend a summit of the 27 heads of government, which is the plan that has not yet been confirmed due to security concerns. It would be Zelensky’s second foreign trip since the Russian invasion on Feb. 24 last year. In December he left his country for the first time to go to Washington.
Live Blog | Day 348 of the war in Ukraine
Ovation
Not much has been announced on the agenda. “It was prepared in secret, but a speech in parliament is important,” says Hammelburg. “To ask for solidarity he will probably receive a standing ovation”. Zelensky will also raise his calls for arms and EU membership again. The power of repetition is strong, Hammelburg thinks. ‘When the war started nobody really wanted the country to become a member of the EU. This has changed. Membership normally lasts more than 10 years, which won’t suddenly become two years, but maybe seven.’ And the same goes for weapons. ‘We started with helmets and now it’s long-range missiles and tanks. Theater helps.’
“Elections”
According to the British Ministry of Defense, elections will soon be held in the territories annexed by Russia. It will be another referendum, as has already happened in the region. As then, an overwhelming majority will indicate that they are in favor of joining Russia. “If these areas become Russian territory in Moscow’s eyes, then every Western bullet that falls there will be seen as an attack on Russia,” Hammelburg says. “That could have major consequences.”