By Ahmet Gurhan Kartal
LONDON (AA) - Ukrainians have shown “truly remarkable courage and resilience in the face of such human tragedy,” British King Charles III said Friday.
“It has now been a year that the people of Ukraine have suffered unimaginably from an unprovoked full-scale attack on their nation,” Charles said in a statement on the first anniversary of the war in Ukraine.
“They have shown truly remarkable courage and resilience in the face of such human tragedy.”
The king said, “the world has watched in horror at all the unnecessary suffering inflicted upon Ukrainians, many of whom I have had the great pleasure of meeting here in the U.K. and, indeed, across the world, from Romania to Canada.”
Charles underlined that he met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy earlier this month at Buckingham Palace and he expressed his “personal support for the people of Ukraine.”
“It is heartening that the United Kingdom, along with its allies, is doing everything possible to help at this most difficult time.”
“Therefore, I can only hope the outpouring of solidarity from across the globe may bring not only practical aid, but also strength from the knowledge that, together, we stand united,” Charles added.
On Feb. 24, 2022, in an attack that Ukrainian authorities later said they already knew was inevitable at least a few days in advance, Russian forces crossed into Ukraine from the north, south, and east of the country.
Since then, the war, which continues on a front stretching 1,300 kilometers (nearly 808 miles), is predominantly concentrated in the eastern Donetsk region, as well as the southern regions of the country, with small-scale advances claimed by both Moscow and Kyiv during the past 12 months, replacing Russia's initial lightning offensive with a slow-burning conflict.