“The captain goes down with the ship” is a naval tradition; he will save those on board in an emergency or die with the sinking ship. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy followed the naval tradition. He refused the US proposal to rescue him soon after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, knowing well that it would be the end of his life.
Having the world’s state of art class think tanks and advisers, even the United States was afraid that Russia would occupy the capital Kyiv within a week of the invasion on 24 February 2022.
As Zelenskyy is the “prime target for Russian aggression”, the United States proposed to rescue him, but heroically he refused to run away. Instead, he asked Western leaders to help him with arms and ammunition to resist the advancing Russian columns of tanks towards Kyiv.
A novice comedian turned politician set a standard for world leaders on how to defend the motherland against a superpower. He chose to stay with his fellow citizens and embrace the dire consequences. He deserves credit for his patriotic leadership.
Zelenskyy, along with his fellow citizens, dared to stand up to protect his motherland against mighty Russian forces. Zelenskyy, a babe in the woods, showed audacity against an authoritarian and war veteran, President Putin! That is how he proved himself to be a leader of people.
The world feared seeing a 40-mile-long Russian military convoy, composed of tanks, armored vehicles, and towed artillery, advancing towards Kyiv in the first week of March.
The Ukrainians are also supposed to dread seeing such a vast armada coming to attack. However, the Ukrainian soldiers successfully intercepted the convoy and shattered Putin’s plan to seize Kyiv.
Most think tanks, including Western leaders, criticized Zelenskyy for pushing its people to the Russian Cannons’ fodder, thus leaving the country devastated by the Russian military.
However, the support of Ukrainians gave him the moral courage to protect the country rather than run away. He did not follow the path of other cowardly leaders like in Afghanistan, who fled as Taliban forces started to advance towards Kabul.
His leadership has been further tested through his courageous actions. He kept appearing on TV and social media; he continued tweeting to encourage his men and soldiers fighting on the war front. Even during heavy Russian bombardments, he came out of his bunker and started visiting battlefields and war-torn areas.
Ukrainian soldiers knew how tiny they were in front of the mighty Russian Army, even though they kept fighting with bravery and feared not embracing death for their beloved country. It was only possible when they knew their leader would not leave them and was ready to die with them.
US President Joe Biden said no American soldiers would go to Ukraine to fight against Russia. Knowing this, Zelenskyy requested the West to send him to help with arms and ammunition only, and the leadership said Ukrainian soldiers were ready to give their lives.
Needless to mention that after Zelenskyy’s request to the Australian Parliament on 31 March 2022, Australia sent military equipment to Ukraine that included Bushmasters, armoured vehicles, demining equipment, etc. In support of Ukrainian leadership, Australian PM Anthony Albanese also visited the cities of Bucha, Irpin, and Kyiv in the first week of July 2022.
Zelenskyy became president in 2019 with a vast margin of win in the election to fulfill the people’s mandate. His election agenda was to join the EU and NATO, which Putin did not like; as such, he invaded a sovereign country.
Whatever may be the geopolitical history, it is an unfortunate fate of a weak nation not to make an independent decision to fulfill people’s mandate because its big brother did not like it. Although these are the trends of today’s realpolitik and ground reality, however, Zelenskyy wanted to challenge that trend.
Even after seven months of the Russian invasion, the war of defending Ukraine has continued with vigour under the leadership of Zelenskyy. It is not a question of whether he wins or loses; President Zelenskyy has shown how a dedicated politician sets an example of high-quality leadership to be displayed in times of need.
With a remarkably short period of a political career, he proved himself to be a leader in crisis, which most veteran leaders would fail in the present day.
Zelenskyy was not a born leader. He was a popular comedian and actor, born to a Jewish family in Ukraine. He should be judged for his patriotic actions without prejudice against religious faith, caste & creed.
Weak and small country’s leaders have many great things to learn from his leadership and how he led the people to defend his country. He should be a role model for future leaders who want to do good for the world.
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