The President of Ukraine showed for the first time the bunker on Bankova Street, from where he held the first talks with world leaders at the beginning of the full-scale war.
It was from this shelter that Volodymyr Zelenskyy recorded his address on the fourth anniversary of Russia’s invasion.
Starting from a small office, Zelenskyy walked through the bunker, showing its corridors and offices. The shelter has low ceilings and narrow corridors, with signs reading “Cabinet of Ministers,” “Verkhovna Rada,” and “Office of the President of Ukraine.”
“This office, this small room in the bunker on Bankova Street, is where I had my first conversations with world leaders at the beginning of the war. I spoke with President Biden here, and it was here that I heard: ‘Volodymyr, there is a threat, you need to leave Ukraine immediately. We are ready to help you with that.’ And I replied that I needed weapons, not a taxi,” Zelenskyy said.
A team and the government worked in the bunker, holding daily meetings with the military, making calls, and searching for solutions to help Ukraine survive. According to him, both “official language and non-literary language” were heard in these tunnels.
“Every aid package, every sanction against Russia, every shipment of weapons — all of this had to be fought for. We had to fight for faith in Ukraine. We had to make the world get involved,” Zelenskyy said.
