President Volodymyr Zelenskyy unveiled his long-awaited five-point “Victory Plan” in the Ukrainian Parliament on Wednesday, the 16th of October, underlining that the plan is based on cooperation with Kyiv’s allies, including an unconditional invitation to join NATO and concrete support in the field of arms, while urging the war-weary country to remain united in the uncertain times ahead of the presidential election of its main ally, the US, as Russian troops advance on the eastern front and a bleak winter with power cuts looms, report Reuters and the Kyiv Independent.
In return, he proposed a Western role in the development of Ukraine’s natural mineral resources and said that Ukrainian troops could improve NATO’s security and replace some US forces in Europe.
The plan is built around five key points: NATO membership, strengthening defense, deterring Russian aggression, fostering economic growth and cooperation, and establishing a post-war security framework.
“Together with our partners, we need to change the conditions to end the war. Regardless of Putin’s wishes. We all have to change the conditions so that Russia is forced to make peace”, Zelenskyy told lawmakers and senior officials.
“This plan can be implemented. It depends on our partners. I stress: from our partners. It certainly does not depend on Russia,” he said.
At the top of the list is Ukraine’s invitation to join NATO. The second point of the plan calls for an expansion of military action on Russian territory to eliminate buffer zones in Ukraine, lift restrictions on long-range strikes and increase Western military support, including in air defence and intelligence.
In the third point of the plan, he stressed that Ukraine must acquire a non-nuclear deterrent capability which, he said, would be sufficient to destroy the Russian military.
The fourth point envisages a role for the West in defending Ukraine’s natural mineral resources against Russian attacks, and the fifth sets out promises of post-war reconstruction.
This plan is a major test of the will of Kyiv’s main allies, who have invested many billions to support Ukraine, while fearing an “escalation” in the war against the country with the world’s largest nuclear arsenal.
The Kremlin said it was too early to comment in detail on Zelenskyy’s plan, but Kyiv must “sober up” and realise that the strategy it has in mind is futile.
Russia’s war effort has been bolstered by what Zelenskyy called North Korea’s arms and personnel transfers. Earlier this year, the West and Ukraine claimed that Iran had sent short-range ballistic missiles to Russia, which Moscow has denied.
The speech was attended by senior military, intelligence and political leaders, as well as legislators, some of whom at times stood up to applaud, although some lawmakers were negative about the plan.
Oleksiy Honcharenko said the plan looked “very unrealistic”: “We put almost everything on our partners. What demands are we putting on ourselves?”
After 2.5 years of war, the speech aimed to reassure a weary Ukrainian public that the war could soon be over and to urge unity in the face of growing challenges.
“Thanks to our unity, we achieved and are achieving results in the battles. So please do not lose your unity,” said Zelenskyy.
Zelenskyy said he would go to a summit of European Union leaders in Brussels on Thursday to present his plan.