Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, during an interview on Sunday, the 5th of November, rejected the suggestion that the war with Russia has reached a stalemate and used harsh word in an impassioned speech on why he is “not ready” for talks with Russia, reports the Kyiv Post.
The Ukrainian President commented on reports that US and European officials had spoken to his government about ending the war, after the head of Ukraine’s armed forces, Valery Zaluzhny, admitted that the front line had reached a “stalemate”.
On NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday night, Zelensky said that “the US knows that
I am not ready to talk to terrorists because their word means nothing”.
Zelensky stated that he had no relations with the Russians at the moment and that they know his position and that of his country and people on “dialogue with terrorists” and insisted that to continue diplomacy Russian forces must first leave Ukrainian territory.
WATCH: @NBCNews reports that U.S. and European officials have quietly begun talks around Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations, but Zelenskyy says he is not ready to begin that dialogue with Putin.@ZelenskyyUa: “We can’t trust terrorists because terrorists always come back.” pic.twitter.com/aHQXqcQtxJ
— Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) November 5, 2023
At the end of the interview, the host asked Zelensky if he wanted to share what makes him to keep going and if he ever feels “defeated”.
Zelensky said that although he has “a lot of strength and energy”, he does not want to fight forever because of the “high price”, because war takes “the best of us”, the people, heroes, men, women and children.
“But we are not ready to give our freedom to this f**king terrorist Putin. That’s all, that’s why we are fighting.”
Will you be willing to give up your freedom? OR how to properly address bloodthirsty terrorists — a masterclass from Zelenskyy ??? @MeetThePresspic.twitter.com/vm9CvoXHKU
— Andrew Chakhoyan ?? (@ChakhoyanAndrew) November 5, 2023
At the start of the interview, Zelensky dismissed talks that the war had reached a stalemate,
but admitted that the situation is complicated.
He cited the lack of air defence systems on the front line, which allows Russia to control the skies, thus preventing Ukrainian forces from making rapid advances.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Ben Cardin told Politico on Thursday that Zaluzhnyi’s words “are consistent with what we are aware of” but “there is hope that they will have greater success” during Ukraine’s ongoing counter-offensive operation.
According to Kyiv Post, the front line between the two warring sides has barely advanced in almost a year, despite Ukraine’s efforts to regain Russian-occupied territory with a counter-offensive launched in June.
President Zelensky is actively trying to ensure greater air defence by talking to Western leaders and trying to maintain international support as the conflict continues for more than 600 days.
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