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«Remember Pearl Harbor … remember 9/11,» he said, «when innocent people were attacked from air. … Our country experiences the same every day, every night … for three weeks now. … Russia has turned the Ukrainian sky into a source of death. … This is terror that Europe has not seen for 80 years. … Is this a lot to ask for to create a no-fly zone over Ukraine?
«If this is too much to ask, we offer an alternative: You know what kind of defense systems we need. … You know how much depends on the battlefield … to use powerful, strong aviation to protect our people, our freedom, our land, … you know these aircraft exist and you have them.
«But they are on earth. They are not in the Ukrainian sky. They do not defend our people.»
Then echoing Martin Luther King, he said:
«I have a dream. These words are known to each of you. Today I can say, «I have a need, I need to protect our sky.»
Then, to the soundtrack of the great Ukrainian composer Skoryk’s Carpathian Rhapsody, a piercing melody that comes from Ukraine’s mountains, he showed Congress and the world a video of the destruction, of the Russian attacks on civilians. The film ended with these on-screen words: «close the sky over Ukraine.»
Then Zelenskiy finished his remarks in English with these direct words:
«To the President Biden: I am the leader of my nation. I wish you to the leader of the world. Being the leader of the world means being the leader of peace.»
Introducing Zelenskiy, Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the House, said «Slava Ukraini,» «Glory to Ukraine,» to which Zelenskiy responded, «Heroim slava,» «glory to the heroes.» Pelosi then asked the Congress and the audience, in a special hall for the occasion to join her again in that cry, «Slava Ukraini.»
Watch here, starting from 50:40.00: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srN7n2jVQrg
By Joe Lindsley, Ukrainian Freedom News
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Lviv Now is an English-language website for Lviv, Ukraine’s «tech-friendly cultural hub.» It is produced by Tvoe Misto («Your City») media-hub, which also hosts regular problem-solving public forums to benefit the city and its people.