Zelensky: It is better not to conclude any agreement than to force your people to accept a bad one

President Volodymyr Zelensky is confident that Ukraine will not lose the war with Russia. But he will not agree to peace on humiliating terms.

He said this in an interview with journalist Simon Schuster for The Atlantic.

"I would rather not make any agreement than force people to accept a bad one," he said, emphasizing that Ukraine is ready to continue the fight for a "dignified and lasting peace".

According to Zelensky, for the US President Donald Trump, ending the war with Russia could be a major political achievement and strengthen his position before the US midterm elections scheduled for November this year.

"I think there is no greater victory for Trump than stopping the war between Russia and Ukraine. For his legacy, this is number one," Zelensky said in an interview.

According to him, the most favourable moment for this is before the congressional elections.

"Yes, he wants there to be fewer deaths. But frankly, this is just a political victory for him," the president added.

At the same time, the journalist adds that in the coming weeks, when the campaign absorbs more of Trumpʼs attention, he may decide that the negotiations have become a political burden for him. In that case, the US president may step aside, accusing one or both sides of intransigence.

Zelensky said that the tactic chosen by Kyiv was to do everything possible to prevent the Americans from thinking that Ukraine wanted to continue the war: therefore, "we began to support their proposals in any format that speeds up the process".

He emphasized that the first step towards peace should be real security guarantees from the US and Europe after the ceasefire.

At the same time, Zelensky acknowledged that the main issues related to security guarantees from the US have still not been resolved: for example, whether the Americans will shoot down Russian missiles in the event of a ceasefire violation.

The publication writes that Ukraine has shown its willingness to support the US presidentʼs peace initiatives, "even when they seemed unfeasible or poorly thought out". For example, about the "free economic zone". Zelensky said that the Ukrainian side did not really like it, but Ukraine discussed it.

"Sometimes I get the impression that itʼs like this: what else can we offer Ukrainians, just to see if they wonʼt refuse? We are not afraid of anything. Are we ready for the elections? Yes, we are. And for the referendum? Yes," the Ukrainian leader emphasized.

Zelensky also acknowledged that time for negotiations is limited due to the American election campaign.

“The Russians can use this time to end the war while President Trump is really interested in it,” he said.

The article also mentions former head of the Presidentʼs Office Andriy Yermak who was fired on November 28 amid the NABU investigation into corruption in the energy sector. Zelensky denied that he fired Yermak because of this, saying that he had his reasons.

• Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that the US wants to end Russiaʼs war against Ukraine by June of this year. According to him, the Americans will likely press for future negotiations according to this schedule, because then they will have another priority — the US congressional elections.

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