On "Saturday Night Live," Cecily Strong says goodbye in heartfelt way

In it, he portrayed a lovable high school teacher fed up with corrupt politicians who accidentally becomes president.

Fast forward just a few years, and Zelenskyy is the president of Ukraine for real _ and as Russian troops bear down on his country and Moscow's rockets shatter the peace of beautiful, ancient Kyiv, as much of the world looks on in horror, his new role is playing an unlikely hero for the 21st century.

With courage, good humor and grace under fire that has rallied his people and impressed his Western counterparts, the compact, dark-haired, 44-year-old former actor has refused to leave Kyiv even though he says he has a target on his back from the Russian invaders.

Political observers, many of whom once saw Zelenskyy as something of a lightweight, say they have been moved by his example.

In one display of grit, after an offer from the United States to transport him to safety, Zelenskyy shot back on Friday: ``I need ammunition, not a ride.``

Russian forces on Saturday were encircling Kyiv in the third day of the war, and the chief objective, say military observers, is to reach the capital to depose Zelenskyy and his government and install someone more compliant to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

In the runup to the Russian invasion, Zelenskyy had been critical of President Joe Biden's open and detailed warnings about Putin's intentions, saying they were premature and could cause panic. But after the war began, he has criticized Washington for not doing more to protect Ukraine, including defending it militarily or accelerating its bid to join NATO.