– He (Vladimir Putin – ed.) he clings to every opportunity not to sit down and talk to me. And that's the story – he basically doesn't want any dialogue – he said Volodymyr Zelensky in an interview in which he appeared with his wife Olena.
War in Ukraine. Zelensky on negotiations with Russia: It's a loss for them
As he assessed, direct conversations between Russia and Ukraine would mean a defeat for Russia, which was unable to occupy the entire Ukraine. – Russia's negotiations with Ukraine are a loss for Russia. Why are negotiations undesirable for Russia? Because it is no longer an ultimatum. They did not fulfill their task that Putin set for them, so it is not really a victory for them, Zelensky said.
Informing about the situation on the front, Zelensky said that Ukrainian troops had broken off Russian plans to occupy Kharkov, Sumy and Zaporozhye, which were to be implemented in the fall and winter of 2024. – Moscow she was planning three surgeries there, he explained. – I believe that the soldiers showed their best here. The country went through this in 2024 (…). These are Ukrainian cities and Ukrainian people. I would like to thank the inhabitants of these cities. They passed a serious test, he emphasized.
President Ukrainy announced actions for stabilizing the situation on the front in January. – It's very difficult. If everything that was promised comes, (…) we should receive it all in January, he emphasized.
Trump's victory and the end of the war. “Putin is afraid of him”
The head of state expressed the opinion that the president-elect of the USA Donald Trump can play a decisive role in stopping the war waged by Vladimir Putin. – For us, this is the most important thing. He really can stop Putin. (…) Or help us stop Putin, he said.
According to Zelensky, a strong US position towards Ukraine will help unite other partners around it. – To be honest: Europeans look directly at the opinion (…) of the new president United States America. A lot depends on him, that's a fact. Because he is – once again – determined. I think Putin is afraid of him – Zelensky said and added that intends to meet with Trump after his inauguration.
The president said in the interview, among other things, that: Ukraine supports the idea of deploying European forces on its territoryhowever, this should not preclude its future membership in NATO.
– I think you've heard about the president's initiative France Emmanuel Macron, regarding the deployment of the contingent of the French Republic on the territory of Ukraine. We support such an initiative, but France alone is not enough. We wouldn't want it to be just one or two countries when it comes to this initiative. This should definitely be on the way to NATO. This does not mean that the deployment of European forces excludes Ukraine's future in NATO, he said.
Zelensky said that a just peace for Ukraine is membership in the EU and NATO.
– NATO is the best option for us. We are fighting for it. If not – I wouldn't want to talk about the alternative. Certainly, any security guarantees without the United States are, in my opinion, weak security guarantees, he said.