Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that security guarantees for Kyiv to end Russia’s war would only be effective if the United States provides them, expressing hope to meet US President-elect Donald Trump soon after his inauguration.
In an interview with US podcaster Lex Fridman published on Sunday, Zelensky emphasized that Ukrainians were relying on Trump to push Moscow to end its war. He warned that if the US were to leave the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Russia would escalate tensions in Europe.
As Trump prepares to return to the White House on January 20, there is hope for a diplomatic solution to the war, but also concern in Kyiv that a swift peace could come at a high cost.
During the three-hour interview, which was posted on YouTube, Zelensky reiterated his call for Ukraine’s NATO membership and stressed that any ceasefire without security guarantees for Kyiv would merely give Russia time to rearm and launch another attack.
Zelensky made it clear that the White House under Trump had a crucial role in providing security guarantees, asserting that both he and Trump agreed on the need for a “peace through strength” approach to end the conflict.
“Without the United States, security guarantees are not possible. These security guarantees are the ones that can prevent Russian aggression,” Zelensky said, implicitly acknowledging that Kyiv’s European allies would not be strong enough to manage the situation on their own.
The Ukrainian president argued that Russian President Vladimir Putin was not genuinely interested in negotiations to end the war and would need to be pressured to stop and agree to a lasting peace.
The battlefield situation is currently the most difficult for Ukraine since the early months of Russia’s 2022 invasion, with Ukrainian troops being pushed back in the eastern Donbas region. Despite this, Zelensky warned that if the US were to leave NATO, it would weaken the military alliance and embolden Putin in Europe.
“I’m simply saying that if it does (quit the alliance), Putin will destroy Europe,” he said.
Zelensky stated that he needed to meet with Trump to discuss a course of action to halt the Kremlin and that Europe’s governments also needed to be involved in the process before Kyiv could begin negotiations with Russia.
Regarding a potential visit, Zelensky mentioned that Trump had told him in a phone call late last year that an official Ukrainian visit to the United States would take place soon after he took office. “He told me on the phone that my visit would be one of his first. This topic is important to him. I hope we will meet,” Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian leader also noted that he would attend Trump’s inauguration on January 20 if invited officially.
The interview came the day after Ukrainian troops launched a new offensive in Russia’s Kursk region, where they had conducted a surprise incursion last August. Ukraine has claimed that Russia deployed thousands of North Korean troops in the Kursk area to support its forces.
Zelensky estimated that 3,800 North Korean troops had been killed or wounded in the fighting but said Pyongyang could send many more troops if it chose to do so. He also claimed that North Korea had provided 3.7 million artillery shells to Russia, a figure he compared to the 1 million shells provided by the European Union last year. Reuters could not independently verify these figures.
