Ukraine admits it is difficult to regain territory, needs security guarantees from the West

(CLO) President Volodymyr Zelenskyy admitted that Ukraine does not have the military capacity to regain the territories that Russia has controlled.

In an interview with Le Parisien (France), Mr. Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine will never recognize Russia's control over any part of its territory, however, he also admitted that Kiev cannot currently regain all the lost regions without strong intervention from international partners.

Russia currently controls an estimated 18% of Ukraine's territory, including Crimea and the Donbas regions (Donetsk and Luhansk). The Ukrainian president has not given up on his goal of taking back the territory.

But he acknowledged that Ukraine could not regain all of its territory without stronger support from Western allies. He called on international partners, especially the United States, to increase pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to force him to join peace talks.

A building in a Ukrainian city was destroyed after being hit by a Russian missile. Photo: Unsplash

Speaking at a European Union summit on Thursday, he welcomed French President Emmanuel Macron’s initiative to deploy international troops to Ukraine after a ceasefire, saying the presence of international troops would help Ukraine maintain security and stability in the post-war period.

"Europe needs to make a significant contribution to ensuring Ukraine's security," Zelensky said, adding that Ukraine wanted protection through NATO membership.

Although NATO has affirmed that Ukraine will join the organization one day, there has been no official announcement about the specific time or process. Mr. Zelenskyy said that Ukraine's possible NATO membership would be the strongest security guarantee for his country in the future.

However, he also expressed his hope that Ukraine could receive separate guarantees from European countries and the United States while waiting for the NATO accession process. "It is impossible to discuss this issue only with European leaders. For us, the real guarantee is NATO, but while we are not yet in, we can discuss guarantees from both the United States and European countries," Mr. Zelenskyy said.

Hoai Phuong (according to Independent, Reuters)

Source: https://www.congluan.vn/ukraine-thua-nhan-kho-gianh-lai-lanh-tho-can-su-dam-bao-an-ninh-cua-phuong-tay-post326649.html