The heroic stand is admirable, but I wish Zelensky would get out

[AdamGG]

If there's still a chance and Kyiv isn't totally encircled, I root for Zelensky to get out of the country, while he can. The heroic stand is stirring, but if they're committed to it, Russia capturing Kyiv and the country is inevitable. They're a superpower with massive reserves and expertise, who have been prepping for this for many years. It's like Mike Tyson knocking out an 8 year old.

Zelensky would have enormous value as the legitimate democratically elected leader in exile abroad. As time goes by, Russia's position will weaken and forces will coalesce behind Zelensky as the rightful leader to be restored. That's why, given the chance, the Russians will probably kill him and he should get out and not give them that chance.

[TheProle]

1. Disagree

You don’t get to the point of handing out rifles and Molotov recipes to civilians and just abandon your nation.

[BlueTsunami2018]

2. It's hard for a person of honor to abandon his people.

If he flees like the gutless coward from Afghanistan, it would deflate the people fighting for their country. Seeing their leader willing to sacrifice it all gives them resolve. I don’t know if he could live with himself.

[dchill]

3. When you're a real leader, you lead.

He won't leave.

[C_U_L8R]

4. It was good enough for DeGaulle to get out of Paris.

Zelensky's heart and courage are amazing. But he really can lead from anywhere. Stay alive for Ukraine's future.

[spooky3]

6. I agree and think many in Ukraine would see it that way, too. nt

[dalton99a]

11. +1

[AdamGG]

14. Exactly, Degaulle was the example I was thinking of

[EX500rider]

5. I think he should get out of Kyiv but stay in Ukraine...somewhere in the west of the country nt

[uponit7771]

7. I pray they're helping people to point shoot straight including zelensky

[AdamGG]

8. I agree with what all of you are saying, I just don't see how staying will end well

and not end quickly. I hope I'm wrong. I very much respect his staying, but pragmatically think that he's uniquely valuable if he can stay alive and out of Russian custody.

[Irish_Dem]

9. On the other hand, I think he is making it harder for Putin to kill or jail him?

He is becoming a very sympathetic figure, his bravery and courage are greatly admired.

[AdamGG]

20. The Russians will probably claim that he was killed inadvertantly by crossfire from his own troops

or something like that. Hopefully, he can hold out for days and weeks and become an international hero, but Putin doesn't want that and the Russians are really good at this. It's like Poland resisting the Nazis for a few days before being wiped out.

[Irish_Dem]

22. Right or he fell out of a window. Tragic accident.

Yes I know. There is not much hope.

[AdamGG]

32. Like when Benazir Bhutto was killed and Pakistani state police said

None of the bullets hit her, that she died because she slipped and banged her head on the sun roof of her car.

[Irish_Dem]

37. Yep.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

35. He's like Vitali Klitschko

I don't think the Russians want to martyr them

[Irish_Dem]

38. That is what I am thinking.

He probably knew he was a marked man wherever he went.

So he decided to go down in a blaze of glory, but now he may be untouchable.

We shall see how Putin handles this.

[Flaleftist]

10. I get why some people think he should stay, but as you say he is the legitimate leader.

I recall that being a Machiavelli thing, getting rid of anyone with a legitimate claim to rule when you takeover a territory. If he stays, he risks death. Is that better than him escaping to safety where he can be recognized by the world as the legitimate leader? If I was a Ukrainian, I would want him to survive and would not at all be demoralized by him going to safety. He is one person and the most important person. His safety is paramount, IMO.

[BootinUp]

12. A country needs this kind of leader to beat the terrible odds.

and if something terrible happens to him, they will use the memory of him to carry on the fight. I think we have to realize that this is what self-determination is all about.

[Raine]

13. Totally disagree ... that would completely demoralize

the Ukrainian people, he knows he must stay.

[Bad Thoughts]

15. "Follow me"

Zelensky is attempting an inspirational, authoritative form of leadership, in which he is at the front, not the back.

[BootinUp]

23. You made me think of the scene from "Glory" where

Matthew Broderick leads the troops in their final attack on Fort Sumter. But I am not sure that Kyiv is in such a hopeless state. We will know soon enough.

[CrackityJones75]

41. He would be martyred and the next would take up the mantle.

He is one man. He is not an irreplaceable God and he knows that. His imprisonment or death would be galvanizing.

[Tetrachloride]

17. Disagree. Leaders lead. Refugees escape.

[AlexSFCA]

18. it's a point of no return. He won't leave. And we ALL should be forever grateful for his bravery.

I am not optimistic about this one bit, putin made it abundantly clear that capturing zelensky is one of the goal and brining them to “justice”. In this case, it means death because Zelensky won’t put down his weapon easily.

[marked50]

21. I will leave it to him to decide what he thinks is best. He is the only one who is truly facing

this decision. What transpires is what transpires and he will be a hero in some way -no matter what.

[hippywife]

40. This is the only correct answer.

He doesn't come off to me as a stupid man. He will have already made contingency plans for someone else to lead the in the case he falls or disappears.

[gab13by13]

24. Ukraine is not going to stop Russia from taking over Ukraine/Kyiv.

Richard Engle said tonight on Rachel that Russia has only used 1/3 of its troops so far.

Ukraine will defeat Russia with a strong insurgency, the Russian army can't remain in Ukraine forever. When it looks like Kyiv is about to fall, Zelensky should direct his military to remove their uniforms and fight undercover, and he should govern from another country. Ukraine needs military people leading the insurgency.

[AdamGG]

33. If he waits until Kyiv is "about to fall"

it's too late to get away. It might already be too late. Putin is shrewd enough to know the danger that Zelensky poses as a resistance leader to rally both the Ukranian people and foreign support. Russian soldiers will be under orders to lock down all routes out, with all eyes on capturing/killing Zelensky and his inner circle.

It's likely that in the coming days, when the Russians shut down the utility grid, we will just never hear from Zelensky again. Alexei Navalny returned to Russia to stand up to Putin. How has that worked out? The alternative of Zelensky alive as the legitimate leader around which the resistance and global support rallies is so infinitely better than what is sure to play out, that it seems much wiser to take that route, if it's possible.

I'd like to think that the US or some EU countries have some undercover operatives in place trying to help make that happen.

[Hekate]

25. Nope. He is where a country's leader belongs. To leave is to abandon his post. nt

[gab13by13]

26. Think ahead,

So Zalensky fights until Russia captures or kills him. Russia then declares that some puppet is the president of Ukraine. Just think if Zalensky could have gotten out and from another country he denounces the puppet and he calls the puppet a fraud, and he calls on his people to fight the Russians.

With Zalensky dead or imprisoned who leads the resistance because that is the only way that Ukraine is going to defeat Russia?

It is a pipe dream to believe that Ukraine can prevent Russia from taking Kyiv. Why do you think that Putin demanded that the Ukraine army surrenders? He wants to kill or imprison them so that they can't be a part of an insurgency.

[haele]

28. At this point, there are others who can step in.

Ukrainians will not give up just because their president went down with the palace, as it were. He isn't a dictator, so they've got a line of succession in place. And their military, unlike the Russian military, is highly disciplined in a western style, and can continue down the chain of command. They are also fighting for their country, and they have already experienced Putin's boot on their neck.
I wouldn't be surprised if there's a designated survivor in a safe place.

Haele

[AdamGG]

31. +1000

[Metaphorical]

27. I would expect that he has set up a succession plan

I admire his bravery, but Zelensky is smart enough to know that if he falls, there needs to be someone to legitimately step into his shoes, and who likely is already outside of the country.

[AdamGG]

42. With Zelensky gone, Russian psy-ops will sow discord among the Ukranian resistance

as to who is the rightful leader and divide them into bickering factions. Look what they've done in the US.

[Justice matters.]

29. These guys know how to fight a guerilla war...

He's not alone in this. He's got his team (Cabinet) with him.

[NoRethugFriends]

30. lots of brave keyboard jockeys here

[iemanja]

34. The US offered to help him get out

but he refused. He wants to keep fighting.

[UTUSN]

36. Nope. It's called "truth to power"

[BlueWavePsych]

39. Leningrad or Stalingrad 1942

nt