Today, April 23, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a large press conference for Ukrainian and foreign media in the Kyiv metro.
Here are the most important things the president said:
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy on meeting with Putin: "I donʼt want to, but I have to meet with the President of Russia if we plan to resolve the issue through diplomacy."
- In the event of a "referendum" in Kherson oblast, Ukraine will withdraw from any negotiations with Russia. The same will happen if Russia destroys the defenders of Mariupol.
- On arms supplies from Western partners: "I see changes in the speed of [supplies] from the United States. If this speed increases in other [countries], we will de-occupy our territories faster."
- April 23 is one of the most difficult days in the defense of Mariupol. The Russians are firing on Azovstal and the city from the sea, ground artillery, and tanks, as well as aircraft.
- US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken and US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin will arrive in Ukraine on April 24.
- Currently, the Armed Forces do not have the opportunity to militarily unblock Mariupol. The defenders of the city were also informed about this, we are in touch with them;
- The death toll from a missile strike in Odessa has risen to eight. Zelenskyy called Russiaʼs troops "stinking garbage."
- Russians have already deported about 500,000 Ukrainians to Russia. There are about 5,000 children among them, but these figures are outdated.
- Zelenskyy on Russiaʼs demands: the further the war — the more "want" disappears from Russiaʼs side. "The most pressing issues are security guarantees and neutrality [of Ukraine], the fate of Donbas and Crimea. I believe that there are no more questions. Everything else is a political show," the president said.
- The Ukrainian people are ready to live in a state of heightened combat readiness for years or even decades, as, for example, Israel. "We have no choice. We will be such a state, we have become such a state. When we win, we will be a state with the most powerful and experienced army," Zelenskyy said.
- On the tribunal and the mechanism of the trial of Russian war criminals: "I do not care which tribunal. The result is important to me. The process is underway, and I see great support in this direction. International specialists are coming and joining, many European countries will join this process. Everyone wants to punish the guilty, and everyone understands who is guilty. "
- On the participation of Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich in bilateral talks: "He is in the Russian negotiating team. He was in Kyiv. I am not ready to discuss the format of his meetings. "
- Regarding the risk of using nuclear weapons and the circumstances in which Putin may use them: "I do not think that an adequate person can use nuclear weapons. If the Russian leadership does not lose touch with reality, they will not use nuclear weapons. Can Russia do it? Yes. Do I believe in this — I do not want to believe. If we had nuclear weapons, we would never use them, because we are absolutely adequate people, but the risks of war from the Russiaʼs side would be minimized. "
- About the restoration of Ukraine: one budget of Ukraine is not enough to restore one or another city of our state. I want our partners to rebuild. But itʼs not just about finances, but also professionals. We are interested in financiers, architects, and artists. A large number of professions and people who will come to restore one or another region, which will be assigned to one or another state. We have agreed with the United Kingdom that they will undertake to restore Kyiv oblast. Sweden will take patronage over Mykolayiv oblast. And so we will go step by step.