« JHe thinks Putin is crazy. Yes, really, I’m sure he thinks he’s crazy too. It’s true. He loves to kill. It’s very dangerous for everyone. » This is the state of mind Volodymyr Zelensky was in this Thursday in Brussels, leaving a conclave with European leaders. Suffice it to say that the Ukrainian president did not do diplomatic tricks and bluntly rejected any ceasefire initiative that was not accompanied by solid security guarantees for his country. A dismissal addressed directly to Viktor Orban, whose attitude he considers “too warm” towards Vladimir Putin. The Hungarian Prime Minister had mentioned a sort of Christmas truce with an exchange of prisoners.
The idea of a ceasefire is mainly supported by Donald Trump in the United States. But the American president-elect refuses to bring Ukraine into NATO. For kyiv, the question is existential: how to ensure that Russia will not take advantage of a break in fighting to rebuild its forces? “What will happen in two months, six months, a year, two years? » asks President Zelensky, who refuses to see his country become the theater of an intermittent war.
No negotiation under threat
For him, there is no question of negotiating under threat. German diplomats who witnessed the recent telephone conversation between Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Vladimir Putin assure that the Kremlin’s rhetoric has not changed. For Putin, there is always talk of “denazification” and “demilitarization” of Ukraine. “He does not seem to be actively seeking a solution,” one slips in Berlin.
Therefore, Western support remains crucial. On the energy front, Ukraine needs 19 additional air defense systems to protect its critical infrastructure. Canada and Germany (three Patriot systems) have promised their help, but this remains insufficient in the face of the Russian threat, which methodically targets the country’s electricity stations.
kyiv renounces the transit of Russian gas on its territory
Another strong signal: kyiv categorically refuses to extend the transit of Russian gas through its territory, which expires at the end of the year. This was, within the European Council, a source of tension with the Slovak Prime Minister, Robert Fico, who is very dependent on this Russian gas. “We will not allow additional billions to be earned on our blood,” cuts President Zelensky, aware that energy dependence is the Kremlin’s favorite weapon. A direct message to Robert Fico (Slovakia stopped sending weapons to Ukraine). The 16the package of sanctions, in preparation, could relate to energy, but with the limits of unanimous voting which offers, in this area, leverage to Hungary and Slovakia.
Ukraine is also watching with concern the arrival of some 12,000 North Korean troops in Russia’s Kursk region. Ukrainian services have documented macabre practices: the faces of killed North Korean soldiers are burned to avoid their identification, while Russian passports are found on their bodies. A tactic reminiscent of the treatment reserved for the mercenaries of the Wagner group.
“President Trump is a strong man”
Faced with Donald Trump, whose inauguration on January 20 will perhaps be a turning point, President Zelensky is playing the seduction card. “President Trump is a strong man. I hope he is on our side,” he says, hoping to convince the Republican candidate of the need for a firm position against Putin.
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Kangaroo of the day
Answer
The Ukrainian president is banking on unity between the United States and Europe to counter Russia. He particularly welcomes the initiative of French President Emmanuel Macron concerning a possible deployment of Western forces, while specifying that this can only be a complement to the main objective: membership in NATO that Trump, for the moment , do not consider.
For now, Ukraine is holding out against more than 600,000 Russian soldiers deployed on its territory. Cumulative Russian losses are estimated between 700,000 and 800,000 men, according to kyiv. But for Zelensky, the number of victims does not matter to Putin. It is precisely this indifference to human life that makes the master of the Kremlin so dangerous in the eyes of the Ukrainian president.
