Volodymir Zelensky's shocking physical deterioration 40 days after the Russian invasion

In just over a month, Volodymyr Zelensky went from being an inexperienced president who came from the world of entertainment, to one of the most respected and valued leaders globally. From that February 24, when Vladimir Putin gave the green light to start the invasion of Ukraine, until today, the president was at the forefront of the resistance at all times. And although in each intervention he shows himself with great strength and temperance, the physical deterioration suffered by the head of state as a result of the tension and stress of the war is remarkable.

Just compare two photos to see the shocking before and after Zelensky. In the images released by his own presidential team just days before the start of the invasion, he can be seen with a fresh, shaved face, faithful to his short 43 years.

His last public appearance was this Monday, when he went to the city of Bucha, recovered from the Russian occupying troops. There, Ukrainian forces found numerous civilian bodies in the streets, which generated strong repudiation on the part of the international community.

Already its appearance was very different from that of just 40 days ago. He is visibly tired, with dark circles, and a beard of several days. Also the expression on his face denotes worry, tiredness and stress.

And it's no wonder. In these weeks Zelensky, like all the Ukrainian people, is living a real nightmare. In addition to coordinating the resistance maneuvers of Ukrainian forces, he continues to raise his voice for the international community to help stop Putin's war machine.

Within a few days he also witnessed the brutal war crimes committed by Russian troops. Bucha was, perhaps, the case with the greatest impact. There the invading forces perpetrated a real massacre. After regaining control of the city, Ukrainian authorities recovered 410 civilian bodies.

Some of the victims had their hands tied behind their backs and were executed with a bullet in the head in the middle of public roads. The funeral workers are overwhelmed and cannot continue with the tasks of recovering bodies.

This Monday Zelensky assured from Bucha that “war crimes” were committed that they will be “recognized as genocide”. Dressed in a khaki coat, a bulletproof vest and surrounded by soldiers, he spoke to the press during a visit to this city that was heavily besieged and bombed by Russian troops in recent weeks.

“Every day, when our fighters enter and recover a territory, they see what happens. They are war crimes and will be recognized as genocide,” he said.

In addition to being responsible for leading the Ukrainian resistance, Zelensky also knows that both he and his family are on the Kremlin's list of targets. According to several reports, Putin doesn't just want him out of government to have a president friend of Moscow in his place. The dictator also ordered the assassination of Zelensky and his family.

Mikhail Podolyak, head of the Ukrainian president's office, warned in early March about the existence of Russian “sabotage groups” entering Kiev with the aim of assassinating Zelensky and his family.

Speaking to Pravda.com, Zelensky's adviser indicated that “a very powerful intelligence and counterintelligence network” succeeded in thwarting attempts by Russian recruits, who were killed before reaching the president of Ukraine.

Podolyak argued that Western intelligence services were right to warn that Zelensky was Putin's “number one target”. To date, he said, there have been more than a dozen assassination attempts against the Ukrainian president. Mercenaries from the Wagner Group, supported by the Kremlin, and the Chechen special forces were the main ones responsible for this mission.

According to the Times, the attacks were thwarted by subversive anti-war members within the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB), who alerted the Ukrainian authorities.

Putin does not hide his goal. Oligarch Roman Abramovich, former owner of Chelsea FC, tried to mediate between the presidents of Russia and Ukraine. However, his last meeting with Putin left no room for hope. After giving him a note written by Zelensky, describing the terms that Kiev would consider accepting to end the war, the Russian regime's response was conclusive: “Tell him I'll crush him.”

Despite everything he is experiencing and going through, Zelensky warned that he will not leave his place and that he will remain until the end of the Russian invasion. “I'm staying in Kiev. In my office. I don't hide and I'm not afraid of anyone,” he said weeks ago, in a strong message sent to Putin and his troops.

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