Zelenskyy Criticizes Kyiv Mayor in Rare Public Spat (Video)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized the mayor of Kyiv Vitali Klitschko over the provision of emergency shelters, marking a rare discontent between the two leaders since the start of the Russian military operation.

Zelenskyy stated that Klitschko had not done enough to help the capital's residents cope with Russia's devastating strikes.

Most regions across Ukraine have been impacted by blackouts this week, and while the six million people currently affected is down from a peak of 12 million a few days ago, Zelenskyy said "the biggest problems" were in Kyiv.

"Unfortunately, local authorities have not performed well in all cities," he added in his nightly video address. "In particular, there are a lot of complaints in Kyiv. To put it mildly, more work is needed."

Moreover, the Ukrainian leader indicated that many of the city's residents had been without power "for 20 or even 30 hours", and called for "more support" and "quality work" from the mayor's office.