Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky this week again revisited last Wednesday’s Russian missile attack against Odessa, which coincided with the visit to the Black Sea port city by Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the head of an official delegation.

In comments to the French television station BFM, Zelensky said “you have to be sick to hit with a cruise missile a few hundred meters from the Greek prime minister,” in commenting on the attack while Mitsotakis was in the historic city.

“I think he is someone who has lost touch with the real world. I believe that his goal is the destruction of everything that is alive in Ukraine,” Zelensky added, in referring to his archrival, Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Asked during the interview if he thought Putin had tried to assassinate him, Zelensky said: Did he mean to throw at me or did he have another intention? I don’t think it matters today.”

Mitsotakis interview

In a separate interview in Athens on Wednesday, Mitsotakis said no one realized what was exactly happening at the time of the attack in Odessa, with members of the Greek delegation rushed away in waiting vehicles.

“But one certainly understands what it means to be in a war zone. As I said right after this incident, it’s a reminder that there’s a war going on there every day. We were in Odessa for a few hours, but Ukrainians are attacked by Russia – and I’m not just referring to the Ukrainian military, but to civilians – every day,” he said, adding:

“And just as all of Europe provides aid to Ukraine, so do we, because we we’re also sending a message that no one can change borders by force….This message obviously resonates in our own troubled neighborhood.”