Zelensky: 'We and the United States have different ideas about Ukraine's victory in the war'
On June 30, President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky met with a journalist from the publication The philadelphia inquirer Trudy Rubin. In the interview, excerpts from which we present, the President of Ukraine spoke about possible scenarios for ending the war, the feasibility of peace negotiations, as well as the attitude of Western leaders to Russian aggression in Ukraine.
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Recent months have been difficult for the Ukrainian leader. The armed forces entrusted to him as supreme commander stopped the Russian offensive in the north, but Putin's troops continue to be active in the east. However, the Ukrainians have made impressive progress in unmanned warfare. The Russian navy, attacked by Ukrainian drones, was even forced to leave the ports of occupied Crimea and return to bases in Russia.
About missile strikes on Russian territory
“The biggest problem now is adjustable aerial bombs,” Zelensky said, referring to the fact that Moscow uses thousands of such munitions every month.
Adjustable aerial bombs (CABs) are dropped from aircraft. Therefore, the problem could be solved by using long-range American missiles, such as the recently delivered ATACMS, to attack airfields in Russia.
But permission has not yet been received. Meanwhile, Ukrainian drones of their own design are already hitting Russian military airfields, although they do not have such destructive power as missiles.
Biden recently authorized the use of shorter-range missiles to target Russian troops massed near the Ukrainian border. According to Zelensky, this decision helped stop the enemy’s attack on Kharkov.
“But still this does not solve our problems,” he noted. “This is a tactic, not a strategy.”
On the subject: The peace summit on Ukraine ended in Switzerland: more than 80 countries called for an end to the war
About the formula for “real victory”
Does Zelensky believe that Biden wants Ukraine to win?
“Yes,” he answered the American journalist. “I think this is important for the United States, as it is for Europe, as well as many other countries. But we may have different ideas about what the word victory means.”
“The West wants to deprive Putin of the opportunity to completely occupy Ukraine and put the aggressor in his place. I think this is already a victory for him,” Zelensky said. “We are grateful to the West for not allowing Russia to completely occupy us. But we need justice."
In other words, Zelensky, whose popularity rating among Ukrainians remains at 60%, must listen to the voices of his people, the soldiers who will not accept surrendering one-fifth of their land to Russia after all they have endured.
The first part of Zelensky’s “real victory” is to “prevent the complete destruction of everything Ukrainian” by Putin. In Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia, Moscow is trying to eradicate the use of the Ukrainian language, ban services in the Ukrainian church and the teaching of Ukrainian history in schools. Children are taught that Ukraine has never been a legitimate state.
Putin's true goal is to restore the historical Russian Empire through physical force or political subjugation. Moscow is already realizing this goal in Belarus and Georgia. The Baltic countries may be next.
The second part of the “real victory,” according to Zelensky, is “security for current and future generations of Ukrainians and the impossibility of repeating aggression.”
“We must be in the European Union for economic security. And we must be in NATO for physical security. If we don’t have these two components of victory, there will remain a huge risk that the enemy will return,” Zelensky explained.
However, he fears that the West (especially the United States) remains afraid of a real victory for Ukraine due to the possible collapse of Russia into several states that also possess nuclear weapons.
However, Putin's victory will be incompatible with life for Ukraine.
“Gradually they are destroying Ukrainian independence. They seize territory, then... dissolve it in this Russian dirt,” the president emphasized.
About the four components of war
How can Ukraine overcome Russia's superiority in manpower and weapons?
“Firstly, they really have a lot more people, and the lives of our defenders are much more important and valuable to us. Today, for every Ukrainian killed, there are six Russians,” Zelensky stated.
British intelligence sources say the Russians are now losing 1200 people a day, the highest rate of the war. Even for the Russian army, which treats soldiers like cannon fodder, this ratio is unacceptable.
“Secondly, this is a different war,” Zelensky noted. “This is a war of technology, and the one who is more technologically advanced can win.”
He explained that the West should deprive the Russians of the opportunity to develop the production of drones, including copies of the Iranian Shahed, as well as missiles. To do this, it is necessary to cut off the flow of electronics and spare parts from Europe and China.
Thirdly, according to the president, Ukraine is already producing modern drones and is striving to produce the most modern missiles.
“But we need funds to be technologically more developed than Russia,” Zelensky said, adding that this opens up great opportunities for cooperation with Western governments or private companies.
And, in his opinion, fourth, further sanctions are needed on the export of oil and gas from Russia. This will lead to a contraction of the Russian economy by 2025, forcing Putin to raise taxes and save on social benefits for the population.
“What scares the Russian dictator most of all is a dissatisfied Russian society,” Zelensky assured. – Social tension is a nuclear weapon against nuclear Putin. As soon as the West stops being afraid of Russia after Putin, Russia without Putin will advance faster.”
On peace talks and Trump's plan
The only possible negotiations Zelensky envisions would be based on his own peace plan. He demands a complete withdrawal of troops from Ukraine, reparations and fair punishment for Moscow's war crimes.
What does the Ukrainian leader think about Trump’s statements that he wants to stop military aid to Ukraine and is ready to “end the war in 24 hours”?
According to Zelensky, the US presidential candidate from the Republican Party is ready to demand a ceasefire from both sides and force them to “negotiate” - that is, he intends to give Putin what he wants and not allow Ukraine to return the occupied territories.
“If Trump has this model for ending a war in 24 hours, everyone would want to end it. Perhaps it would even be better in one hour,” Zelensky joked. “But if the idea is to surrender our territories, this will not solve the problem and will not lead to global peace or peace between Ukraine and Russia.”
“We need to ensure our security. NATO membership is not only good for Ukraine; this would ensure security for Russia,” Zelensky emphasized. “The Ukrainian border would be fixed, and the world would not be afraid that Putin would return again.”
Unfortunately, the upcoming 75th anniversary NATO summit, to be held from July 9 to 11 in Washington, will not offer Ukraine a clear path to membership.
“This is a policy of one step forward and two steps back,” commented the Ukrainian president. “I don’t think such a policy is worthy of world leaders.” It’s more like the very careful steps of sappers across a minefield.”
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“If the United States is afraid of irritating Putin, and that is the reason we are not invited to NATO, then we are asking our strategic partners to give us what could protect us: Patriot missile defense systems, a significant number of F-16 aircraft and the ability to use weapons on Russian territory,” the President of Ukraine concluded. “If NATO is not ready to defend us, we ask NATO to give us everything so that we can defend ourselves.”
Putin senses America's weakness and is hoping for a Trump presidency that might cut off support for Ukraine. Meanwhile, Russia is forging alliances with Iran, North Korea and China, which sees the fate of Ukraine as a litmus test for possible scenarios for taking over Taiwan. Therefore, everything could turn into a disaster if the White House does not provide Ukraine with everything it needs before the November elections.
“It is impossible to help Ukraine with one hand and shake Putin’s hand with the other,” Zelensky finally said.
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