Zelensky compares retaking of Kherson to D-Day

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky compared his country retaking the regional capital of Kherson to D-Day, the start of the Allies regaining captured territory from the Nazis during World War II, saying it could be a turning point in the war with Russia. 

Zelensky said in an address to the Group of 20 (G-20) summit in Indonesia on Tuesday that the Ukrainian operation to liberate Kherson is reminiscent of many other battles in the past that were turning points in armed conflicts. 

“Those battles symbolized such changes, after which people already knew who will be victorious even though the ultimate victory still had to be fought for,” he said via video link. 

The G-20 summit is an annual gathering of the world’s most developed economies to discuss the major global economic issues.  

Zelensky said Ukrainian forces will need to fight for a while longer to free the entire country from Russian occupation, but his country’s forces are feeling what the Allies felt after landing in Normandy, France. 

Allied forces launched their operation to liberate Europe from Nazi control on June 6, 1944. After winning the battle on D-Day, the Allies gradually pushed German forces back over the course of the next year before Germany surrendered in May 1945. 

Ukrainian forces reentered Kherson on Friday, taking back the regional capital that Russia had captured in the early days of its full-scale invasion. 

Ukrainian officials had expressed caution that Russia could be laying a trap with the retreat, and Zelensky said in an address on Saturday that Ukraine had removed 2,000 explosive devices in Kherson that Russia left behind. 

Zelensky also presented his vision for a path to peace in the conflict and how to achieve it in his remarks Tuesday. He maintained that Ukraine must not be offered compromises with its sovereignty, territory or independence. 

Zelensky proposed preserving food and energy security, the release of Ukrainian prisoners, the withdrawal of Russian troops and justice. 

He said none of those steps needs to take longer than a month, and some can be completed in a few days.

Reports indicated earlier this month that the Biden administration was pressing Ukraine to demonstrate it was open to engaging in peace talks with Russia. 

Zelensky said Tuesday that Russia’s words cannot be trusted and that it must prove itself in its actions.