Zelensky speech drew a ton of reaction from Ukrainians on social media with sarcasm being a dominating sentiment of most comments.

Online commentators were quick to point out that seeing Ukraine’s hryvna sliding amid reports of almost imminent Russia’s invasion  and hearing the country’s leader warning  people against panic buying  ‘buckwheat and matches’ is a clear sign you should do quite the opposite.

 

 

There were ‘Don’t panic’ memes like the one below depicting  a man wearing a chemical protection suit and a gas mask in an apartment cluttered with stockpiles of groceries and preserves.

‘Buchwheat stockpiles’ was a recurring theme for many online comments while one social media user suggested Ukraine should bring in buckwheat as a currency in place of flagging hryvna.

Zelensky was also grilled for his tepid and long overdue response to Russia’s military build-up at the borders as the video address was his first official statement on the issue, which, notably, came only after Wednesday  talks with US state secretary Anthony Blinken.

 

 

Another user noted that state officials’ inaction and incoherent messages are the real reason why people actually are starting to panic over Russia’s military threat.

 

Zelensky’s ‘don’t panic’ message was also compared to ‘Don’t look up’ movie suggesting that the  Ukrainian government is looking the other way when Russia is ominiously flexing its muscles at the border.