Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy during a press conference with Denmark's Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen (not pictured) in front of the presidential palace in Kyiv, Ukraine, September 6, 2023.
Ritzau Scanpix/Ida Marie Odgaard via REUTERS Acquire Licensing RightsSept 11 (Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy and his allies urged Ukrainians on Monday to keep their focus squarely on the war effort 18 months into Russia's invasion, an indication that authorities in Kyiv were steeling for a long campaign.
Zelenskiy has long called for greater focus on the war effort and pledged to intensify a crackdown on corruption as part of Ukraine's bid to join the European Union.
The campaign prompted the dismissal of Ukraine's defence minister last week and has also seen the detention of a business magnate who was once Zelenskiy's mentor on fraud charges.
But appeals by Zelenskiy and his lieutenants are now more strident as Ukraine's military presses its steady, but relatively slow, counteroffensive in Russian-occupied areas.
Persons:
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Mette Frederiksen, Ritzau Scanpix, Ida Marie Odgaard, Zelenskiy, David Arakhamia, Annalena Baerbock, Vladimir Putin, Putin, Ron Popeski, Pavel Polityuk, Jamie Freed
Organizations:
Denmark's, REUTERS Acquire, European Union, EU, NATO, Thomson
Locations:
Kyiv, Ukraine, Russia, Ukrainian, Soviet