The Ukrainian president explained to the BBC the lack of confidence he had in Putin. “Weapons are the only language Russia understands,” he said.
By Belga
IUkrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rules out ceding any part of Ukrainian territory to reach a peace deal with Russia, he warned in an interview with Britain’s BBC channel, nearly a year after the Russian invasion from the country.
Giving up land would mean Russia could “keep coming back,” Zelensky says. “Any territorial compromise would weaken us as a state. It’s not about making a compromise per se. But the question is: who should we do it with? With Putin? For the Ukrainian president, an agreement with his Russian counterpart is ruled out due to a lack of trust.
In his eyes, the supply of weapons by the West is particularly crucial to ending the war. “Of course, modern weapons accelerate peace. Weapons are the only language Russia understands. »
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In this interview, Volodymyr Zelensky also discusses a possible active role for Belarus in the conflict. This country, one of the main allies of Russia, has so far not actively participated in the fighting on Ukrainian territory. “I hope she will not join” the war, commented the president. “If she does, we will fight and we will survive.”
A year ago, when the invasion began, Belarus was effectively used as a base for Russian troops. They would be making a “serious mistake” if they allowed this to happen again, the Ukrainian leader concluded.
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