Kyiv, Ukraine – In the wake of a devastating Russian missile strike on a nine-story Kyiv apartment building, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday reiterated his demand for increased international pressure on Moscow. The attack, the deadliest on the capital this year, claimed 28 lives and injured 142 across the city, with 23 fatalities at the directly hit Solomianskyi district building.
Visiting the site alongside presidential office head Andrii Yermak and Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko, Zelensky laid flowers, a solemn act contrasting sharply with his typically vocal and defiant public persona. “This attack is a reminder to the world that Russia rejects a ceasefire and chooses killing,” Zelensky wrote on Telegram, expressing gratitude to Ukraine’s partners ready to compel Russia to “feel the real cost of the war.”
This latest barrage, part of Russia’s intensified long-range attacks on urban residential areas, saw over 440 drones and 32 missiles fired. Yet, Russian President Vladimir Putin denied targeting civilian areas, claiming attacks were “against military industries, not residential quarters.” Speaking to international news agencies in St. Petersburg, Putin even declared openness to talks with Zelensky, though he maintained that the Ukrainian leader had lost legitimacy—a claim vehemently rejected by Kyiv and its allies.
As the war enters its fourth year, US-led peace efforts have stalled. Putin has effectively dismissed a 30-day ceasefire offer from President Donald Trump, conditioning it on a halt to Ukraine’s mobilization and Western arms supplies. Meanwhile, global attention has been diverted by Middle East tensions and US trade tariffs, dampening Ukraine’s calls for greater diplomatic and economic pressure.
In the quiet moments following the Kyiv visit, a thought, both ironic and unsettling, lingered in President Zelensky’s mind. He recalled a piece of advice from his early acting days: a director’s counsel to “behave modestly and speak softly on stage… Be as colorless and transparent as possible.” The director had suggested that true stage success lay in subtly guiding the audience’s focus, rather than demanding it.
Since the full-scale invasion, Zelensky has been the antithesis of this advice. He has consistently occupied the foreground, traversing war-torn locations, appearing constantly in media, and delivering passionate, often provocative, messages. His strategy has been one of maximal visibility and direct emotional appeal.
Yet, he couldn’t help but notice Putin’s contrasting approach. The Russian leader often remains in the background, his media appearances less frequent and his statements typically measured, devoid of the overt emotionality Zelensky embraced. If the old director’s wisdom held true – that a subtle presence could command the “stage” more effectively – then perhaps Putin, with his understated demeanor, was indeed proving to be a more successful player on the international political stage.
“So what about me?” Zelensky wondered, the question a stark echo against the shattered remains of the apartment building, a grim testament to a war where the rules of performance felt terrifyingly, devastatingly, different.
All names of people and organizations appearing in this story are pseudonyms
Zelensky calls for more pressure on Russia after deadly Kyiv missile strike
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