Zelenskyy in Paris explains why territorial concessions to Putin are unacceptable

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that any territorial concessions by Ukraine, which Ukrainians cannot accept, will only lead to Russian leader Vladimir Putin using the seized territories as a springboard to attack Europe if it does not become strong.

Source: Zelenskyy in an interview with French weekly news magazine Le Point, as reported by Ukrinform

Quote: "Some elements of the media claim that if Ukrainian soldiers withdraw from the eastern regions of our country, it will bring peace there. But this is not true. Putin seized Crimea to use it as a springboard to encircle the south.

He seized part of our country's east in 2014 to use it as a springboard for the complete occupation of these regions. If tomorrow we were somehow to leave Donbas, which will not happen, we would open up an unprotected space for Putin next to the one-and-a-half-million city of Kharkiv. He would also seize the industrial centre of Dnipro, which would open up new opportunities for him."

Details: Zelenskyy believes that Europeans should broaden their perspective and imagine what would have happened if Putin's original plan – to seize all of Ukraine – had succeeded.

Quote: "If Putin had managed to seize our entire country, he would have used it in the same way, as a springboard. Whether he does this or not will depend on how strong Europe is. If Europe is strong, he is unlikely to do anything, but if it is weak, it will suffer from Russia's actions."

Details: Zelenskyy noted that the distance between Moscow and Paris is less than 3,000 kilometres.

Quote: "But the missiles that Russia is using against Ukraine today have a range of 2,500 kilometres. We ourselves have missiles with a range of 3,000 kilometres. And war drives technological development here, in Europe, but also in Russia. With such technological development there can no longer be any distant wars.

Believe me, in two years the Russians will have many missiles – and so will we – with a range of 5,000 kilometres. The sea will not protect anyone, the ocean will not protect anyone. In this respect, the weapons that Russia uses today are not so different from nuclear delivery systems."

Details: Zelenskyy reiterated that it is Ukraine's fate that will determine how much the war affects Europe and where its eastern border will lie.

Quote: "If Ukraine does not hold out, that border will be Poland or perhaps Germany. Europe was once divided in this way. The eastern border of West Germany was the border of the western world. Today everything depends on us, on how far we allow Russian ambitions to go."

Background: Zelenskyy believes that a scenario similar to that of South Korea, in that no real peace treaty was signed at the end of the Korean War but the country still managed to prosper, could take place in Ukraine.