President Volodymyr Zelensky urged fellow Ukrainians not to panic after a day of heightened tensions in the war-torn country.
Zelensky made the call against the backdrop of the closure of several embassies in Kiev due to concerns about the imminent threat of a major Russian airstrike.
“The information overload that has taken place today, the panicky messages that have been sent, all this only helps Russia,” he said in his evening video message on Wednesday.
Russia is a “crazy neighbor,” but this is as true on the 1,001st day of the war as on any other day of the war before it, he said.
Many people in Ukraine are increasingly concerned that Russia could escalate the war after Ukraine reportedly used Western long-range missiles to attack Russian territory.