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‘I Need Ammunition, Not A Ride’: Zelenskyy Rejects US Push To Evacuate, Will Stay And Fight Russia

Screenshot Twitter, https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/1497450853380280320?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Shelby Talcott Senior White House Correspondent
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Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy rejected an offer from the U.S. to evacuate Ukraine’s capital and said he needs “ammunition, not a ride.”

The Ukrainian president was reportedly asked to evacuate Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, by the U.S., according to The Associated Press. Zelenskyy declined, instead asking for more ammunition to help fight off the Russians advancing into the city.

“The fight is here; I need ammunition, not a ride,” Zelenskyy said, according to The AP, which cited a senior U.S. intelligence official with direct knowledge of the conversation. (RELATED: ‘Putin Chose This War’: Biden Lays Out New Sanctions Against Russia After Full-Scale Invasion)

While it’s unclear exactly how far Russian forces have made it into Kyiv, the city was facing a slew of airstrikes on Friday and reports indicated troops were closing in.

Zelenskyy confirmed in a video posted on Twitter that he remains in Kyiv and plans to fight.

“I’m here. We are not putting down any arms. We will protect our country, because our weapons are our truth,” he said in one video posted Saturday, according to The AP.

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Zelenskyy’s rejection of evacuating comes just after he warned that he’s Russia’s “number one” target. The U.S. seemed to confirm this, with State Department spokesman Ned Price saying Thursday evening that he’s a “prime target for Russian aggression,” CNN reported.

“The enemy has designated me as the target number one, and my family as the target number two,” Zelenskyy said Thursday, according to the BBC.