President Volodymyr Zelenskyy struck a defiant tone Tuesday, insisting that Russia has not "broken Ukrainians" nor won the war, as Ukraine marked the fourth year of Moscow's full-scale invasion.
More than a dozen senior European officials were in the Ukrainian capital in a show of support on the anniversary – a grim milestone in a war that has killed tens of thousands of people and put European leaders on edge.
Zelenskyy said his country has withstood the onslaught by Russia's bigger and better-equipped army, which over the past year of fighting captured just 0.79% of Ukraine's territory, according to the Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank.
"Looking back at the beginning of the invasion and reflecting on today, we have every right to say: we have defended our independence, we have not lost our statehood," Zelenskyy said on social media, adding that Russian President Vladimir Putin has "not achieved his goals."
"He has not broken Ukrainians; he has not won this war," Zelenskyy said.
