Digital ZelenskiEverything you need to know about Volodymyr Zelenskyy — comedian, president, wartime leader.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy addressing the nation after the Bucha massacre
Zelenskyy addressing the nation following the Bucha massacre (Ukrainian presidency, CC BY 4.0).

Wartime Addresses

The speeches that defined the war's public record — venue, date, and verbatim lines.

The form

Two kinds of address define Zelenskyy’s wartime communication. The nightly video address — short, direct, filmed simply — speaks to Ukrainians. The set-piece speech — to a parliament, a summit, a nation — speaks to the world. Both are archived by the Ukrainian presidency; the most consequential are summarized here. Verbatim lines appear on Sayings.

Munich Security Conference — 19 February 2022

Five days before the full-scale invasion, Zelenskyy appeared in person in Munich — against the advice, widely reported, of those who urged him not to leave Kyiv. He invoked the Budapest Memorandum, pressed partners on sanctions before rather than after an invasion, and closed: “We will defend our land, with or without the support of partners.” The speech reads, in retrospect, as the last pre-war warning.

UK House of Commons — 8 March 2022

By video, in the invasion’s second week: “We will fight to the end, at sea, in the air… We will fight in the forests, in the fields, on the shores and in the streets.” The deliberate echo of Churchill’s 1940 speech was noted by every outlet that covered it (Hansard records a standing ovation).

U.S. Congress — 16 March 2022

By video: “I have a dream. These are the words I know. I have a need. I need to protect our sky.” The address explicitly requested a no-fly zone — a request the United States did not grant.

After Bucha — April 2022

Following the Russian withdrawal from the Kyiv region and the discovery of civilian killings in Bucha, Zelenskyy visited the town and addressed the nation: “It’s very difficult to talk when you see what they’ve done here.” The address framed the war, from that point, as a documented atrocity as well as a military contest.

G20 summit, Bali — 15 November 2022

By video, Zelenskyy presented the 10-point peace formula (see Peace Formula): “I want this aggressive Russian war to end justly and on the basis of the UN Charter and international law.” The formula became Ukraine’s standing diplomatic position.

U.S. Congress, in person — 21 December 2022

In Washington, before a joint meeting: “Your money is not charity. It’s an investment in the global security and democracy that we handle in the most responsible way.” He presented a Ukrainian flag signed by the defenders of Bakhmut.

The Victory Plan — 16 October 2024

Before the Verkhovna Rada, Zelenskyy presented a five-point Victory Plan — NATO invitation, defense, deterrence, economic partnership, post-war security: “Together with our partners, we must change the circumstances so that the war ends.”

The nightly addresses

Beyond the set pieces, the presidency has published hundreds of evening addresses — casualty announcements, front-line updates, diplomatic readouts. They constitute the most complete public diary of the wartime presidency and are archived at president.gov.ua.

Source notes