The following is excerpted from The Dispatch. To read the full article, CLICK HERE.

On the evening of February 25, two days into the Russian invasion of his country, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stood beside his senior staff in a capital under fire, and recorded the simple video below: 

His words, translated, are direct, and they rocketed around the globe: 

Good evening to you all. The head of government is here. The head of the president’s office is here. Prime Minister Shmyhal is here. Adviser Podoliak is here. The president is here. Our soldiers are here. Our citizens are here. We are all defending our independence—our country—and it will stay that way. Glory to the men and women defending us. Glory to Ukraine. Glory to the heroes. 

Since that message Zelensky has been back in the streets of Kyiv, refuting rumors that he’s fled. He has flatly refused a reported American offer of evacuation, declaring “The fight is here. I need ammunition, not a ride.”

It’s worth repeating, this is a capital under active attack. As I write this newsletter, Russian tanks are reported to be on the city’s outskirts, it’s suffered repeated air and missile strikes, and there’s been fighting reported in the city’s streets. Moreover, there is every reason to believe that killing or capturing Zelensky is a key Russian war aim.

Yet he stays. 

It’s sometimes hard to gauge in real time whether any given moment, no matter how dramatic, is truly culturally or historically significant. Not every viral video matters, and we’re quick to create (and forget) both heroes and villains. 

But there is something about Zelensky’s stand that is different. There’s something about it that’s penetrating far beyond his country’s borders and touching the hearts of Americans across the political spectrum. It means something real, something we should remember. 

To read the full article, CLICK HERE.

Another thing from this author:

Speaking of Ukrainian Christians, I was profoundly moved by this short video, of a Ukrainian family singing the hymn, “He Will Hold Me Fast.” Here’s the Ukrainian family, followed by the same wonderful hymn, in English. He will hold us fast.