President Zelenskyy Says He Knows What Victory Looks Like For Ukraine

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has revealed what he expects to happen if peace talks are to be held again with Moscow.

Despite Russia's size and resources compared to Ukraine, President Vladimir Putin's 'special military invasion' has not been going as successfully as he first anticipated.

Despite the destruction Russia has inflicted upon Ukraine, the Kremlin has failed to capture most of the country's major cities, including the capital of Kyiv.

While peace talks have been held, none have yet proven successful in bringing an end to the war.

However, Zelenskyy has since spoken out about the conditions he would fight for at the next set of talks.

Putin sent troops across the border on 24 February shortly after recognising the two breakaway regions of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states.

Early last month, a spokesperson for the Kremlin claimed the country would halt its military action 'in a moment' if Ukraine met three demands, including recognising Donetsk, Luhansk and Crimea – which Russia annexed in 2014 – as independent states.

However, in an interview with CBS on '60 Minutes Overtime', discussing what Ukraine would agree to in return for peace, Zelenskyy stressed that Ukrainian citizens are 'not ready to give away our country'.

He said: "I think we've already given up a lot of lives, so we need to stand firm for as long as we can. But this is life, different things happen.

"We understand the Russian side. We understand one of their provisions has always been to recognise Crimea as Russian territory. I would definitely not let them recognise that."

As well as Russia's demands regarding Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk, Zelenskyy explained the Kremlin also now wants parts of southern Ukraine, such as the city of Mariupol.

A theatre in the southeastern city was attacked by Russian forces on 16 March, where hundreds of civilians were reported by Ukrainian officials to have been sheltering.

"Yes, I understand they will not withdraw from Crimea and will be arguing and negotiating for one territory or another in the south of our country, the Donbas," Zelenskyy reflected.

While he explained he 'clearly understand[s]' such questions around territory will definitely arise in any future negotiations 'if there ever are any', Zelenskyy noted Ukraine was 'not willing to give up our territory from the beginning'.

The Ukrainian president stated: "Had we been willing to be giving up the territory, there would have been no war."

When asked what victory would look like, Zelenskyy replied: "First of all, our people would definitely feel victory. They would come back; the return of refugees is blood for the body of Ukraine. Without them, there's nothing. The bombardments would end, we would recover our territory, and there would be no Russian soldiers in our country.

"Yes, I understand they will not withdraw from Crimea and will be arguing and negotiating for one territory or another in the south of our country, the Donbas. I know exactly what has happened after which we can say 'this is victory', but if you don't mind, I'm not going to talk about it just yet."

If you would like to donate to the Red Cross Emergency Appeal, which will help provide food, medicines and basic medical supplies, shelter and water to those in Ukraine, click here for more information 

Topics: Volodymyr Zelensky, Vladimir Putin, Russia, Ukraine

Poppy Bilderbeck

Poppy Bilderbeck is a Senior Journalist at LADbible Group. She graduated from The University of Manchester in 2021 with a First in English Literature and Drama, where alongside her studies she was Editor-in-Chief of The Tab Manchester. Poppy is most comfortable when chatting about all things mental health, is proving a drama degree is far from useless by watching and reviewing as many TV shows and films as possible and is such a crisp fanatic the office has been forced to release them in batches.