Monday17 February 2025
vesti.org.ua

Trump's role, 200,000 peacekeepers, and the threat of a "deal with the devil." What Zelensky addressed at the Davos summit.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced at the forum in Davos that a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump is being planned, although no date has been set yet. Furthermore, he reiterated the critical need for robust security guarantees for Ukraine in order to bring an end to the active phase of the war.
Роль Трампа, 200 тысяч миротворцев и опасность "соглашения с дьяволом". Что заявил Зеленский на Давосском форуме.

For more details on Zelensky's statements during his media interactions in Davos, see the material from RBK-Ukraine below. This is reported by Kontrakty.UA.

 

On the Upcoming Meeting with Trump

According to Zelensky, teams from Ukraine and the USA are currently working on organizing the meeting.

"Legally, before the inauguration, no one wanted to take any very concrete steps regarding future plans. We had several conversations; they were more atmospheric, discussing what is happening, where we stand, and what we expect. These were general meetings to help our teams technically prepare for the next steps. We need our teams to work together, and a meeting will be organized. As of now, I don't have a date," he stated.

On Trump's Call to Putin

"I was not involved in (preparing Trump's call to Putin), although I remember him saying that we would communicate, but we would also work on contact with the Russians. However, we must know that at the intelligence level, the USA and Russia have had contacts throughout the three years of the war, and they had many different communications, and many Europeans did as well. I am not surprised that the USA will have contacts with Putin; the only thing I believe is that it is right for us to be a priority," Zelensky said.

Ukraine Will Never Recognize Occupied Territories as Russian

"I don't really believe that, as of today, he (Putin) has an understanding of how to exit the war while keeping Ukraine as a strong independent country with security guarantees. Not only does he not want this, but I also don't think he has any vision for an exit. I believe he currently has none. And through the strength of the USA, preferably with Europe, it is crucial to put pressure on him," the President of Ukraine believes.

Zelensky added that Ukraine cannot simply start anew not knowing whether Putin will resume the war tomorrow. He also emphasized that it is important not to start any negotiations with Russia without Ukraine, as it would be a loss.

"Putin cannot be treated as a subject; he has violated everything, he is to blame, so it cannot just be a deal with the devil. He must know what he has violated, what mistakes he has made, etc. If we start to talk to him as equals, I think it would be a loss for Ukraine," Zelensky believes.

When asked if Ukraine is ready to give occupied territories to Russia, Zelensky emphasized that "legally we do not recognize them, no matter what anyone wants."

"Even if all the world's allies unite, we still will not recognize the occupied territories. It is impossible. Otherwise, you have a choice - your people who have lost children, husbands, or it was all for nothing, or not. We must find everything to end the hot phase of the war, there can be many negotiations, and in this matter, the number one issue of the hot phase of war is security guarantees," he added.

On Ukraine in NATO

"From some states regarding (the issue of Ukraine's NATO membership), there was initially not a very transparent policy, and they did not support us in NATO, and these were just false words that Ukraine would be in NATO, because decades go by, and Ukraine is not in NATO," Zelensky believes.

He also thinks that there was a weak position from Germany and the USA regarding Ukraine's NATO membership, as "they had a dialogue with the Russians, and I believe they lost that dialogue because they always refer to some past agreements with the RF."

"Why did you suddenly make agreements about us without us? We are an independent country. I would like to level the respect of others towards Ukraine, and we are fighting for security guarantees. We want to be in NATO; the majority of NATO countries support us, but 4 countries do not support us in NATO - the USA, Germany, Slovakia, and Hungary. But for all four, it depends on the USA, and if Trump is willing to see Ukraine in NATO, we will be in NATO, everyone will support it. If he does not want to, we will not be in NATO," he explained.

On Kellogg

Zelensky believes that Trump's special envoy on Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, may come to Kyiv not alone.

"Perhaps Kellogg will come not alone; maybe someone else will come, and we will also hold a meeting in Washington at the leaders' level. We want to prepare for this meeting and have plans. Soon, I think so; I don't know, it's hard to know right now; we need to get to know each other better," he commented on Kellogg's upcoming visit.

On the "Peace Plan" from Brazil and China

"We certainly understand that the leadership positions will soon be held by the USA, and as I said, Ukraine's future is in Europe, and we would like Europe to have a strong voice at that negotiation table," Zelensky believes.

He also added that, in his opinion, any future diplomatic negotiations will be based on various initiatives and mentioned the peace formula.

"We agreed to build a large document; it is important to have a foundation. There is a large document, a vision for each point. I do not know if we will all be able to end the war point by point according to this formula. Probably, Trump will have his own approach and his own proposals. However, there are still documents that are important and contain fairness. Regarding strengthening Ukraine and security guarantees, we had a document called the 'Victory Plan,' which discussed Ukraine's strength and its status regarding victory. Brazil and China, we really wanted to involve all countries in a common vision, but Brazil wanted to have its own initiative, and China wanted to have its own. The African continent had its own initiative, and Arab countries had their own vision. And everyone will have a thousand visions that do not bring us any closer to ending the war. Very generalized things from the Brazilians and the Chinese. And they also did not bring us closer to ending the war," Zelensky explained his position.

He added that Ukraine wanted to unite everyone around the peace formula.

"And today, I believe that Brazil's train has left in another direction. I met with Lula and strongly urged him to be a partner in ending the war, but now he is not a player. He will not be a player for Trump either," Zelensky said.

Strong Security Guarantees: What Are They?

Zelensky noted that the best security guarantee for Ukraine would be NATO; according to him, NATO provides the cheapest security guarantees for Ukraine, for America, Europe, and the Russians.

"We have an army of 800,000; if there are neither NATO nor clear security guarantees, we must have a million-strong army. What other number can stop them (the Russians)? We have experience. We need a million in defense; who will feed a million-strong army? If Europe says that Ukraine is defending not only itself but also the values of Europe, logically, then let’s all support this army, because Ukraine’s budget will not sustain a million-strong army. When I talk about Russian assets, I find less painful alternatives," he added.

He also commented on the idea of hosting foreign troops in Ukraine.

"And about the contingent, it is not just someone standing there. No, I do not support such an idea. I support the idea of a contingent as part of security guarantees. Since they (the Russians) have a one-and-a-half-million army, and if we have half as many, it means we need contingents with a very significant number of soldiers," he explained.

Journalists asked Zelensky about the size of such a contingent, citing the figure of 200,000 as an example. To which Zelensky responded that "200,000 from all Europeans is the minimum; otherwise, it is nothing."

"Otherwise, it is like when we had the OSCE, and no one knew how they could help. They just had offices, and that was it," he added.

On Putin's Ultimatums

Journalists asked Zelensky about the so-called "Istanbul agreements" that Putin often talks about. To which the President of Ukraine responded that "there are no Turkish negotiations, as I am the president, I am the negotiator, and in Russia, he is the negotiator - Putin. So, I have never met with Putin in Turkey."

"Some came in the early days of the occupation - some from Ukraine, they came with some papers and handed me an ultimatum from Putin. It was the same letter, with some changes, in Turkey. They said that I had to retreat, and they would replace me with the pro-Russian Medvedchuk. So, I am no longer president. For me, this is not a problem; our