The Ukrainian president vowed to arm himself as Russian troops approached Kiev.
Zelenskiy said: "We are all here to defend our independence and our country. "
Thousands of refugees continued to flee Ukraine as Russian troops blockaded the Ukrainian capital Kiev on Friday, and several senior officials, including the Ukrainian president, prime minister and speaker of parliament, vowed to stay in Kiev and oppose aggression.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, surrounded by his advisers, stood outside his office in a central Kiev street in a combat uniform to address Ukrainian nationals.
Zelensky said in a selfie-style video posted on Facebook on Friday; "We're all here." Our army is here, and so is our people and society as a whole. We are all here to defend our independence and our country. We will continue to do so. Glory to our guardians! Glory goes to Ukraine.
Hours later, Zelensky warned in a televised address that he believed Russian troops would attack the capital overnight.
"The night will be more difficult than the day, because the sound of shelling and the roar of air raids can be heard over Kiev," he said. ”
"We cannot afford to lose Kiev," he said. ”
Kiev's mayor and legendary boxer Vitali Klitschko also said he would fight for his city with his brother Wladimir, who is also a former heavyweight boxing champion.
"I have no other choice." Klitschenko told "Good Morning Britain" on Thursday.
Several members of Ukraine's parliament said they remained in the city and were prepared to defend themselves as the Russian military continued its offensive.
Kira Rudik, the leader of the Ukrainian political party Holos, told CNN on Friday: "I am in the center of Kiev and I will stay here." "
Rudic said: "I am a member of Parliament and the leader of the party. It is my duty to come here."
Rudic said she could hear the airstrikes when she spoke to CNN and that she had to hide in bomb shelters several times since the Russian military launched its attack on Ukraine on Thursday morning.
Rudik said she was ready to "carry weapons" and that she and her "partners" had received Kalashnikov assault rifles, "so if russian troops come to Kiev, we will be able to resist."
Mp Sviatoslav Yurash said in an interview with BBC Radio 4 on Friday morning that he was "looking at the AK-47 in front of him" as Russian troops approached Kiev.
"We are giving anyone who wants to help fight in Ukraine a chance to do that, and we are arming those who will fight this battle against the Russians in various ways," he said. ”
Yurash said the country, which has a population of about 40 million, "will not stand idly by," even as it faces a more powerful Russian army.
The former Ukrainian president also appears ready to defend the capital, Kiev. Former President Petro Poroshenko was on the streets of Kiev on Friday in an interview with CNN, holding a Kalashnikov submachine gun in his hand.
He said they did not have any heavy artillery, tanks or enough weapons for those who voluntarily joined the Ukrainian civilian territory defense battalion, but he believed they could resist Russian aggression "forever.".
Poroshenko said: "I think Russian President Vladimir Putin will never occupy Ukraine ... No matter how many soldiers he has, how many missiles he has, how many nuclear weapons he has, we Ukrainians are a free people, and Europe is our bright future. ”
The businessman-turned-Poroshenko served as Ukraine's president from 2014 to 2019, when he was defeated by comedian Zelenskiy. Poroshenko returned to Kiev from Poland last month after facing charges of treason in a Ukrainian court over escalating tensions with Russia, which he denied.
He told reporters last month: "I will return to Ukraine to fight for Ukraine." "
According to media reports, the passports of Poroshenko, one of Ukraine's top 100 richest people, have been seized by ukrainian authorities and cannot leave the country. Headlines hit list
