Zelenskiy says the US will support Ukraine’s efforts to stop Russia By Reuters
(Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Tuesday night that no one would give his country peace as a gift, but he believed the United States would stand by Kyiv as it fought to fend off a 34-month Russian invasion.
Zelenskiy, in a 21-minute New Year’s video greeting to his compatriots, also said that only a strong Ukraine can protect peace and win the respect of the world.
“We know that peace will not be given to us as a gift, but we will do everything to stop Russia and end the war, which is what each of us wants,” Zelenskiy said against a background of the country’s blue and yellow flag, battle scenes and pictures of children.
He recalled conversations with outgoing American President Joe Biden, President-elect Donald Trump and “all those who support us in the United States”.
“I have no doubt that the new American president wants and will be able to bring peace and end Putin’s (Russian President Vladimir Putin’s) anger,” said Zelenskiy.
“You understand that the first one is impossible without this. Because this is not a street dispute where both sides need to be comforted. This is a full-scale abuse of a depraved country against a civilized person. And I believe that, in cooperation with the United States, we have the power to force Russia to have the right peace.”
Russia, Zelenskiy said, was not to be trusted in war or negotiations.
“If today Russia shakes your hand, it does not mean that tomorrow the same hand will not start killing you,” he said. “The Russians are afraid of those who are free. What they don’t understand. They are afraid of freedom.”
The Biden administration has provided the largest military support for Ukraine among Western nations since the February 2022 full-scale invasion.
Ukraine has been wary of Trump’s criticism of Kyiv’s aid and his promise, during the US election campaign, to quickly end the war, but Zelenskiy expressed hope for assurances of continued US support.
Ukraine has endured a difficult year, with Russian forces taking village after village faster in the east than at the beginning of the invasion.
In recent months, Zelenskiy has said that any resolution to the conflict is predicated on receiving security guarantees from the West and Kyiv receiving an invitation to join the NATO alliance, an idea Russia rejects.
In his greeting, Zelenskiy said that last year, Ukraine began an attack on the Kursk region in southern Russia, carried out long-range airstrikes against remote areas of Russia and developed domestically produced drones and other weapons.
“Every day in the coming year, I and all of us must fight for Ukraine to be strong enough,” he said. “Only such a Ukraine is respected and heard – both on the battlefield and at the negotiating table.”
