Maksim Chmerkovskiy Shares Video From Ukraine Capital, Heads Into Bomb Shelter Amid Russian Invasion

The DWTS pro is currently filming “World of Dance Ukraine” in Kyiv — which is where he found himself on Thursday morning when Vladimir Putin’s shock move to invade his neighbor got underway.

“I’m not a social media guy at times of personal difficulty, and this is not the time where I would normally be posting anything on social media… but yes I am here. I am in Kyiv. Contrary to what I should have done probably a while ago,” he said in a video posted to Instagram, filmed from his hotel rooftop.

“Everyone has their sources. I trust my sources. And no one saw this coming… not that no one saw this coming, but everyone was hoping that the finality of this situation would be averted, that there is not going to be this kind of aggression, these kind of aggressive measures.”

In the background, sirens could be heard blaring, as he panned his camera to show military vehicles and ambulances rushing through the streets.

“That’s military,” he said, and pointing just blocks away. “That’s center of Kyiv, right there.”

In a second video, Chmerkovskiy became even more emotional, as he shared his realization that while he has the resources to flee to safety, many of his countrymen do not.

“Honestly I’m getting really emotional, it’s been a little difficult… you know me, you know me, I stay strong, and I don’t show it but… I want to go back home,” he said, his voice cracking. “And I realize that I have the way to, you know? I realize that I have a different passport, and my family is far away.”

“And what I’m realizing is that my friends, whose kids are here, whose moms and dads are here, and elderly people are here, and that they can’t just escape, you know?”

He then made a direct appeal to the people of Russia, begging them to ignore the propaganda claiming Ukrainian people are their enemies.

“Dear Russians: I know you know me. And I know that there is a lot of people currently in Russia that are watching this, that are watching the news, and hearing the propaganda, and hearing this complete nonsense that’s been talked about,” he said.

“I am not at this point someone who is pleading for someone else’s safety from a far distance, from a safe distance. I’m somebody who’s about to go into a bomb shelter because shit’s going down.”

“I think that in the 2022 civilized world, this is not the way we do things. I think that as a powerful, forward thinking nation, not a third-world kind of country, I think the Russians need to get up and actually say something. Because nobody’s opinion is being heard.”

The invasion, he said was “all one man’s ambition.”

“However it sounds, however convenient it sounds in Moscow, however comfortable you are where you are in Russia, I just don’t think that this is the right thing, and this is the right steps, and this is the correct actions,” he continued.

“I am uneasy, I am very scared. Words are… I don’t know what words to use. But I do know at the very least I have a chance — I have a passport and I have a way out. A lot of people here do not. And it’s f–king nonsense.”

The dance pro, who was born in Ukraine when it was still a part of Soviet Socialist Republic, said that he fell back in love with his country in his past six months of filming there.

“I never fell out of love — but I know now who these people are. I know now who this country is. What it represents. What it stands for. And it is completely not what is being portrayed to the Russian people in order to justify this invasion,” he said.

He also asked that people respect his family back in the US, and not bombard wife Peta Murgatroyd with messages.

“I’m going to do my best to keep people informed,” he promised. “I am not a journalist, I have absolutely no reason to do this, other than I just want an opinion of someone else, because news is crazy. News is crazy, and the reports have been insane.”

Maksim also shared heartbreaking footage of what appeared to be families taking what belongings they could carry, and joining those heading to the west of the country for safety.

“I will never be the same,” he wrote in his Instagram post. “This is stressful and I’m getting old feelings back, like I’ve done this before. This does feel like the way it was when and why we left in the 90s. Like my old PTSD I’ve finally fixed is coming back.”

“I literally only just forgot about those ‘always on the edge’ feelings and actually started worrying about things like bbq grills. I’m crying as I’m typing this because all man deserves to worry about ‘bbq grills’ and not f–king war. Hug your loved ones.”

In an Instagram story update, Maksim acknowledged he had scared a lot of people with his post fearing for his safety; he assured them he was safe for now and had options — “I think”.

He said the hotel bomb shelter was open and guests could take refuge there now; he was packed and ready to run in, but was waiting “until we hear the sirens, and then I’ll be in there.”