Ukraine must systematically weaken Russia, for this goal it is essential to join EU and NATO, – Chief of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine

Kyrylo Budanov, the Head of Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence, has said that Ukraine must systematically weaken Russia, for this aim it is necessary to actively integrate into Euro-Atlantic and European structures.

Budanov told this in an interview with Polish news portal Wirtualna Polska.

Budanov has responded on how he sees future relations between Ukraine and Russia. As he said, “it will be a very difficult process.”

“It is interesting to see that Russian information space, primarily on the Internet, as well as amongst some of the opposition, now fosters the idea that only the “Putin clique” should be blamed for this invasion, that has begun to spread; and that Russian society has nothing to do with it. Factually, we are also at war with a country, where more than two-thirds of the population supported Putin’s actions!”

According to Budanov, we do not know what the future of Russia will be, how many elements it will break up into, and with whom Ukraine will have to talk about reparations, and bringing to justice those guilty of war crimes.

“Our tasks, tasks of Ukraine, are the systemic and state weakening of the Russian Federation. So, following this aim, we must actively enter the Euro-Atlantic and European structures; on political, economic, security, legal, humanitarian and educational levels,” he emphasised.

Budanov stressed that Ukraine should forget about its post-Soviet period, “like a terrible dream”.