Zelenksy Reveals Massive Casualties in Monday Speech: ‘At Least Tens of Thousands’ Killed in Mariupol

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday that “tens of thousands” of people have been killed in the southern city of Mariupol amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

“The Russians completely destroyed Mariupol and burned it to ashes. At least tens of thousands of Mariupol citizens must have been killed,” he told South Korea’s National Assembly in a virtual address. “But for Russia, Mariupol is just an example. Ladies and gentlemen, we’ve seen a lot of destruction like this in the 20th century.”

In the speech, Zelensky called on South Korea to provide lethal military assistance.

“If Ukraine receives such weapons, not only will they save the lives of ordinary people, but it will be a chance to save Ukraine,” he said.

According to AFP:

South Korea has given Ukraine some one billion won ($800,000 USD) of non-lethal military equipment, such as bulletproof helmets and medical kit, Seoul’s defense ministry told AFP Monday.

But it turned down a recent Ukrainian request for anti-aircraft weaponry, saying that providing such weapons on the scale requested would impact South Korea’s own “military readiness posture.”

As a result of their own security situation, Seoul’s ability to provide “lethal weapons systems to Ukraine is restricted,” a defense ministry official told AFP.