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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that total sanctions against Russia and strong security guarantees for Ukraine are needed to end the war fast.
The head of the Ukrainian state said this in an interview with the British broadcaster ITV News, Ukrinform reports.
When asked by a journalist whether it is possible to end the war in 2025, Zelenskyy said: “Of course, we want it very much. Every year, to be honest, we would really like our Western partners to have the strength to force Putin to end the war. In fact, I believe that there is every opportunity for this now. In my opinion, Trump wants a fast end to the war.”
At the same time, he emphasized that Americans and Europeans need to act together in order to bring an end to the war.
“We are talking about sanctions. Sanctions were imposed thanks to our partners. While these measures have had a negative impact on the Russian economy, but it has managed to adapt to certain sanctions. Why? Because there has always been a gap: sanctions have been imposed, for instance, sanctions on banks, but not on all banks. Sanctions have been imposed against agriculture, but the shadow fleet is still operating. Now sanctions have been imposed on the shadow fleet, and we are grateful to our partners, especially Britain, for this, but again, not on all their ships. And we are talking about hundreds, not dozens of ships,” the President noted.
Zelenskyy concluded that sanctions should be total, and that “a collapse could happen in Russia” as a result. “Everyone sees it, everyone understands it, but not everyone does it,” he said.
He also emphasized that the second component of a lasting and just peace is security guarantees for Ukraine.
As previously reported, speaking in Davos, Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed his belief that U.S. President Donald Trump would make every effort to end the war this year.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that if martial law is suspended for the elections, Ukraine may lose its army. He underscored that the issue of elections is being raised by the Russians.
“Our people are against elections during the war, because everyone understands what will happen. I am not afraid of elections, but what are elections? We have to end martial law or suspend it. If we suspend martial law, we may lose the army. And the Russians will be happy because the issues of spirit and combat capability will be lost. Moreover, it is legally impossible to retain such an army. This is a fact. People will return home, and they will have every right to do so. This will undoubtedly be used by Russia as a basis for counteroffensive actions,” Zelenskyy said.
He emphasized that “it is the Russians who are raising the topic of elections because they need their man in Ukraine.”
The President also emphasized that it is impossible to ensure that every citizen can vote.
“How will the military vote? It is technically very difficult. Without them, voting will be unfair. What kind of democracy can we talk about when those who defend it cannot vote? What about the millions of people who are abroad? There are eight million people there, and it is essential to set up infrastructure for them. And what about the millions residing in the occupied territories?” he emphasized.
Zelenskyy added that he believes that after the vote, Russia will claim that “these elections were illegitimate.”
“Russia will claim that they did not vote abroad. How can people vote honestly in the temporarily occupied territories controlled by Russians? It will be the same referendum as in Crimea,” the President emphasized.
In his opinion, Russians are pursuing “complete destabilization in Ukraine.”
Earlier, in an interview with the United News telethon, alongside First Lady Olena Zelenska, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that the primary condition for conducting elections is the lifting of martial law in Ukraine.
Other key points from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s interview with British broadcaster ITV News:
- The Kursk operation yielded about a thousand prisoners, the Russians were more than 60 thousand people short of pushing out the Ukrainian forces, because the Russian Armed Forces are not so combat-ready.
- Putin’s goal is to return the Soviet Union and the influence of the Russian Empire on the world.
- On the possibility of negotiations with Putin: “If I am sure that Europe and America will not abandon us and give us security guarantees, I am ready for any format of negotiations.”
