NATO protection for part of Ukraine?
Asked about NATO,Volodymyr Zelenskyy said “no one has offered” Ukraine a place in the alliance, but he suggested that if an invitation was extended to the parts of the country that his military controls, this could end the “hot stage” of the war.
This would be under the condition that the NATO invitation itself recognises Ukraine’s internationally-recognised borders – including Crimea and areas in the east of the country currently occupied by Russia.
He appeared to accept that occupied parts of the country would fall outside of such a deal for the time being, and that their possible return would be negotiated diplomatically at a future date.
Working with Trump
Mr Zelenskyy said he had not spoken to the president-elect since September, but added that he wants the pair to exchange ideas.
“We had a conversation. It was very warm, good, constructive… It was a very good meeting and it was an important first step – now we have to prepare some meetings,” he said.
He also spoke of the need for bipartisan support from both Democrats and Republicans, saying there are “a lot of voices from both parties which are on our side”.
‘People more important than land’
The Ukrainian leader said it was “difficult” to talk about the morale of soldiers at the front, amid reports that it is low.
He spoke of the primary importance of his country’s people, more so than territory.
“This war (is) for independence of the people, not of the land,” he said. “The land is very important, it’s a part of of identity. But the people are the most important.”
Draft age
Mr Zelenskyy brushed off a question about the draft age in Ukraine, after recent suggestions in some quarters that it should be lowered to 18 to ease Kyiv’s manpower shortage.
“I believe we have a lot of soldiers, but the limitation is that, frankly, we must save as many lives as possible,” he said.
“And if in European or American offices there is an idea that we need to do something differently about the draft age, I want to just ask our partners to do their part of the job, and we will deal with our job.”
Putin a ‘terrorist’
Mr Putin “he thinks that we are part of Russia”, Mr Zelenskyy said, saying that nobody can change the Kremlin chief’s mind.
In a big development, he suggested that he would be open to speaking with the Russian leader.
But he added: “Not to give him a chance to give us an ultimatum… because he’s a killer, and he is a terrorist, and he is alone.”
