In remarks on his interview to Reuters shared by Zelenskyy, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia has entered what he described as the second phase of its winter campaign, expanding its attacks beyond the power sector to target water supply facilities, reservoirs, dams, and logistics infrastructure.
Zelenskyy said Ukraine is in a stronger position than it was during the winter, but argued that more funding is urgently needed to protect its skies. He said the technology is already available and that, with the necessary budget, Ukraine could produce 2,000 interceptor drones a day.
He said Ukraine would respond to every Russian strike and warned that Moscow would have no reason to consider even a pause in the war if it faced no pressure. Zelenskyy claimed that pressure on Russia throughout the world was decreasing and pointed to what he called changes in sanctions policy. He also added that Ukraine still has its own tools, like long-range weapons.
Zelenskyy also said that Russia is helping Iran with intelligence, which he called blackmail. He stated that Ukrainian intelligence agencies had evidence and that Moscow is using the issue as a bargaining chip by saying that it could cease supporting Iran if the US stopped sharing intelligence with Ukraine.
On diplomacy, Zelenskyy said Ukraine takes negotiations seriously and is ready for talks, preferably at the level of leaders. But he said Russia is seeking what he called an ultimatum outcome and wants Ukraine to accept its conditions, including the withdrawal of Ukrainian forces from parts of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions still under Kyiv’s control.
He argued Russia understands the cost of trying to seize that territory, saying such an effort could bring heavy monthly losses without any certainty of success.
Zelenskyy said the Kremlin is trying to convince Ukraine’s partners that there is nothing left worth defending there. He rejected that argument and warned that unless Putin is stopped, the war will continue and could spread beyond Ukraine.
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