Zelenskyy rules out ceding Donbas, draws hard line in peace talks
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during the interview with Piers Morgan (Photo: Piers Morgan Uncensored/youtube)
Ukraine cannot agree to concessions that would hand Donbas
to Russia, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview with British
journalist Piers Morgan published on YouTube on Feb. 18.
“I cannot support such an idea. And I think that in any very
difficult circumstances I am not sure that our people will be ready. Because …
thousands, tens of thousands of Ukrainians have died on that front, defending
this part of Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.
The president stressed that the issue of Donbas is not only
about territory. It concerns people, identity, values and freedom, as well as
the strategy of defending the state, he said. Zelenskyy added that Donbas is
part of Ukraine’s independence and its values.
Zelenskyy also said no one can guarantee that Russian dictator
Vladimir Putin will not launch another attack.
“As of today, no one can give us, with all due respect to
the powerful American president [Donald Trump] and America as a whole, a very
firm promise,” the president said.
He emphasized that the United States is a strong country and
that Ukraine needs its security guarantees.
“But even having all this, no one can tell us and give us a
promise that Putin will not come again,” the Ukrainian leader added.
Zelenskyy underlined that when it comes to security guarantees,
Ukraine means they must be strong.
“That the rest of the world or some countries will be ready
to respond to Putin if he returns with his aggression or when he comes again,”
he said.
U.S. security guarantees for Ukraine
On Jan. 12, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he had
instructed officials to finalize and submit for top-level consideration a
document on U.S. security guarantees for Ukraine. He added that it should be “a
document of historic level.”
Politico reported that Ukraine fears it will not be able to
rely on security guarantees from allies under any potential peace agreement and
therefore must be prepared to stand on its own, like a “steel porcupine,” so
that Russia does not attack again.
On Feb. 9, Zelenskyy said the documents on security
guarantees for Ukraine were already ready.
The president later signed a decree enacting a decision by
the National Security and Defense Council on Jan. 30 regarding security
guarantees for Ukraine.
On Feb. 13, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said
Kyiv had received information from Washington about readiness to ratify
security guarantees for Ukraine in the U.S. Congress.
On Feb. 14, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the United States had
offered Ukraine security guarantees for 15 years, but Ukraine wants security
guarantees for 20–30 years.
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