Experts in, and observers of, the Ukrainian crisis now universally agree that the life of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in danger and that he could be executed by Russian invaders soon.
As Russian forces attacked infrastructure and headed for government buildings in Kiev Thursday morning, two prominent Ukrainians emailed Newsmax to voice concern for Zelenskyy.
"They can try to kill or capture him," Dr. Violeta Moskalu, founding CEO of Global Ukraine, told us flatly.
"But," she quickly added, "the power vertical works. This will not give them anything. There is a speaker [of the Ukraine Parliament], there is a prime minister, and there is a military leadership of the armed forces, which consists of senior combat generals. No one will give up."
Oksana Yurynets, member of Ukraine Parliament for the 8th Convocation (constituency) and professor at Lviv Polytechnic National University, also voiced concern for Zelenskyy's life as Russian paratroopers were seizing government buildings.
"This night promises to be disturbing," Yurynets wrote. "I hope that the Mayor of Kyiv [onetime heavyweight boxing champion] Vitali Klitschko will defend the city and the president."
She noted that the mayor "was preparing [for a Russian strike] for a year and organized a defense."
The day before the Russian invasion, Newsmax spoke to a senior National Security Council official at the White House and asked if Zelenskyy would be safe.
The official replied: "I hope so."
John Gizzi is chief political columnist and White House correspondent for Newsmax. For more of his reports, Go Here Now.