Czech President clarifies proposal to Kyiv to give up territories to Russia
Czech President Petr Pavel (Getty Images)
If Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy presents a plan to end Russian aggression against his country, it must be evaluated, and everything possible should be done to achieve Kyiv's goals, but not at any cost. Everything that is realistically achievable must be considered, according to Czech President Petr Pavel.
The Czech president commented on his interview with The New York Times, where he said that Ukraine must realistically assess its military goals and perhaps accept that part of its territory may remain under Russian control, at least temporarily.
According to Pavel, the article reflects his long-standing approach. "I haven’t said anything new; I’ve spoken about this for a long time. At last year's Munich conference, I warned against raising unrealistic expectations," said the Czech president.
In his view, hopes that the war will end with a clear victory for Ukraine within weeks or months could be very dangerous for everyone.
Pavel believes the issue should be viewed from the perspective of what is realistically possible. "I have never questioned that we should support Ukraine in restoring its territorial integrity; that is the ultimate goal. We simply need to realistically assess the timeline and what price this goal might entail," he said.
"Victory over Russia in Ukraine at the cost of half of the Ukrainian population being destroyed is probably not a victory," added the Czech president.
Ukraine's Ministry of Foreign Affairs responded to such claims about the possibility of temporarily leaving part of Ukraine under occupation. "The withdrawal of Russian occupation forces from Ukraine’s sovereign territory within its internationally recognized borders is one of the mandatory points of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's peace formula," the statement said.
