There will be ‘no compromise’ in Ukraine’s sovereignty and territory in exchange for peace with Russia, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday.
“A just peace is no compromises as to the sovereignty, freedom and territorial integrity of my country,” Zelenskyy said during a news briefing with President Joe Biden.
Zelenskyy said Russia would also have to compensate Ukraine for the damages inflicted by the invasion but added that for many Ukrainians who have lost family members, compensation was “of no consequence.
“I would like to emphasize how many parents lost their sons and daughters on the front lines, so what is just peace for them? Money is nothing,” Zelenskyy said.
He added that many now “live by revenge” and that prolonging the war will only harden more Ukrainians against peace with Russia.
Biden said he had the “same vision” as Zelenskyy and that the United States would continue to support Ukraine with military aid with the hopes that Russia will be forced to agree to peace terms.
“When President Zelenskyy is ready to talk with the Russians, he will be able to succeed as well because he will have won on the battlefield,” Biden said.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is now in its 10th month, devastating the country’s infrastructure and resulting in millions of evacuees. Ukraine resisted the initial invasion and has been subjected to Russian air strikes and brutal fighting in the country’s east.
Power has been knocked out across the country. Last week in Kyiv, authorities said that more than half of residents were without electricity or water.
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