KYIV: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed his hope that Russian leader Vladimir Putin will spend the rest of his life in a basement with a bucket after visiting a village north of Kyiv to mark the anniversary of its liberation from Russian troops.
During the invasion, Russian forces forced nearly the entire population of Yagidne town into a school basement measuring just 200 square metres.
The Yagidne villagers, including an 18-month-old baby, were kept there for nearly a month, and 11 of them died from lack of oxygen.
“After seeing all this, I hope the Russian president will spend the rest of his life with a bucket for a toilet in a basement,” Zelensky said.
Zelensky and German Vice Chancellor pay respect to victims
Zelensky and German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck travelled to the village to pay their respects to the victims of the Russian invasion.
The survivors of the basement imprisonment recorded the names of those who died “so as not to forget them” and even wrote lines of the Ukrainian anthem on the walls.
Kyiv authorities and Western governments have accused Russian forces of committing numerous crimes in Ukraine, including the annexation of the Crimea region and support for separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine. Moscow denies the claims.
The ongoing conflict between Ukraine and Russia has led to thousands of deaths and the displacement of millions of people.
The two neighbouring countries have been at odds since 2014 when a pro-Russian president was ousted in a popular uprising, and Russia annexed Crimea.
