Klychko: The Holodomor was a deliberate crime aimed at exterminating Ukrainians, and the war is a continuation of that agenda.

The Holodomor was a meticulously planned crime by Russia aimed at the destruction of Ukraine and Ukrainians, and the current war is a continuation of genocide.

This was reported by RBK-Ukraine with a link to Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko on the Day of Remembrance for the Holodomor Victims.

"Today we honor the memory of the Holodomor victims. For decades, the Soviet Union and then Russia tried to erase from history the facts of the brutal attempt to annihilate our nation. About the genocide of Ukrainians. But we remember. And we know the truth. Today's war is a continuation of Russia's efforts to destroy Ukraine and Ukrainians. But we are strong and we fight! They broke our spirit, but they did not conquer Ukraine. And every barbaric crime will be punished," Klitschko stated.

He reminded that during the darkest periods of the Holodomor in Ukraine, 17 people died every minute, and more than a thousand every hour.

"This was a carefully orchestrated crime," Klitschko emphasized. "People were not only deprived of food – they were isolated to eliminate any chance of rescue. Even letters in which peasants requested help were intercepted. The Holodomor affected 22 regions of Ukraine. The hardest hit were the villages of Kyiv, Kharkiv, and Poltava," he added.

Klitschko also shared how his family suffered from the Holodomor.

"My grandmother Yevdokiya was the only survivor from a family where her parents and 11 siblings died of starvation. When she told me about it in my childhood, I perceived it as a terrible legend... Eternal memory to all the Ukrainians who perished from hunger! And glory to those who today stand against the 'new genocide'," Klitschko emphasized.