Trump's role, 200,000 peacekeepers, 'deal with the devil': What Zelenskyy said in Davos
Photo: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Getty Images)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at the Davos Forum that a meeting with US President Donald Trump is being prepared, but no date has been set yet. He also reiterated the importance of strong security guarantees for Ukraine to bring an end to the active phase of the war.
For more details on Zelenskyy's statements in his media interactions in Davos, see the RBC-Ukraine article below.
Contents
- On the upcoming meeting with Trump
- On Trump's call to Putin
- Ukraine will never recognize the occupied territories as Russian
- On Ukraine in NATO
- On Kellogg
- On Brazil and China's 'peace plan'
- Strong security guarantees: What they mean
- On Putin's ultimatums
- How Trump could force Putin to negotiate
On the upcoming meeting with Trump
According to Zelenskyy, Ukrainian and American teams are currently working on organizing the meeting.
“Legally, before the inauguration, no one wanted to take any very concrete steps on future plans. We had several conversations; they were more about setting the tone. We discussed what is happening, where we stand, and what we expect. These were general discussions to enable our teams to prepare for the next steps technically. We need our teams to work and organize the meeting. So far, I don’t have a date,” he said.
On Trump's call to Putin
“The preparation of Trump’s call to Putin was not discussed with me, although I recall him mentioning that we would communicate and also work on contacts with the Russians. But we need to understand that, at the intelligence level, the US and Russia have had contacts throughout the three years of the war, with many different interactions, and many Europeans have had them as well. I am not surprised that the US will have contacts with Putin. The only thing I believe is right is that Ukraine should be a priority,” said Zelenskyy.
Ukraine will never recognize the occupied territories as Russian
“I don’t really believe that, as of today, there is an understanding in his (Putin's) mind of how to exit the war while leaving Ukraine intact - strong, independent, with security guarantees. Not only does he not want this, but I also don’t think he has a vision for an exit. I think he simply doesn’t have one at the moment. Through the strength of the US, ideally in cooperation with Europe, it’s important to pressure him,” said the Ukrainian president.
Zelenskyy added that Ukraine cannot simply start anew without knowing if Putin will reinitiate the war tomorrow. He stressed the importance of not starting any negotiations with Russia without Ukraine’s involvement, as it would signify defeat.
“Putin cannot be legitimized. He has violated everything; he is guilty. This cannot just be an agreement with the devil. He must know he has broken the rules and made mistakes. If we start negotiating with him on equal footing, I think it’s a loss for Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said.
When asked if Ukraine is prepared to cede occupied territories to Russia, Zelenskyy emphasized, “Legally, we do not recognize this, no matter what anyone wants.”
“Even if all the allies in the world unite, we still will not recognize the occupied territories. That’s impossible. Otherwise, the choice would be your people, who have lost their children and husbands, or that it was all for nothing. We must do everything to end the hot phase of the war. There can be many negotiations, but the number one priority to end this hot phase is security guarantees,” he added.
On Ukraine in NATO
“Initially, some countries had an unclear policy (on Ukraine’s NATO membership) and didn’t support us in NATO. Their words about Ukraine joining NATO were false because decades have passed, and Ukraine is still not in NATO,” Zelenskyy said.
He believes that Germany and the US had weak positions on Ukraine’s NATO membership due to their dialogue with the Russians. “They lost that dialogue because they always referenced some agreements made with Russia.”
“Why were you negotiating about us without us? We are an independent country. I would like to see equal respect for Ukraine. We are fighting for security guarantees, and we want to be in NATO. Most NATO countries support us, but four countries don’t - namely, the US, Germany, Slovakia, and Hungary. Yet, all four depend on the US, and if Trump is ready to see Ukraine in NATO, we will be in NATO. If he doesn’t, we won’t,” he explained.
On Kellogg
Zelenskyy suggested that Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, might not come to Kyiv alone.
“Perhaps Kellogg won’t come alone; maybe someone else will come as well. We will also have a meeting in Washington at the leadership level. We want to prepare for this meeting and have plans. Soon, I think, though it’s hard to know now. We need to get to know each other better,” he said about Kellogg’s visit.
On Brazil and China's 'peace plan'
“We undoubtedly understand that leadership positions will soon belong to the US, and as I’ve said, Ukraine’s future lies in Europe. We would like Europe to have a strong voice at the negotiating table,” Zelenskyy noted.
He added that any future diplomatic negotiations would be based on various initiatives and mentioned the peace formula.
“We agreed to build a comprehensive document. It’s important to have a foundation - a substantial document with a vision for each point. I don’t know if we will all manage to end the war point by point using this formula. Perhaps Trump will have his approach and proposals. Still, documents with justice at their core are essential. Regarding strengthening Ukraine and security guarantees, we had a document called the Victory Plan, which focused on Ukraine’s strength and its status concerning victory. Brazil and China wanted to involve all countries in a unified vision, but Brazil opted for its initiative, and China wanted its own. African countries also had their initiatives. Arab nations had their perspectives. Everyone will have a thousand visions that don’t bring us any closer to ending the war. Brazil and China’s proposals are too general. They have also failed to bring us closer to ending the war,” Zelenskyy explained.
He emphasized Ukraine’s intention to unite everyone around the peace formula.
“Today, I think Brazil’s train has gone in a different direction. I met with Lula and urged him to be a partner in ending the war. Now, he’s not a player. He won’t be a player for Trump either,” said Zelenskyy.
Strong security guarantees: What they mean
President Zelenskyy said that NATO would be the best security guarantee for Ukraine, describing it as the cheapest security guarantee for Ukraine, the US, Europe, and even Russia.
"We have an army of 800,000. If there are neither NATO nor clear security guarantees, we would need to have an army of one million. And what number can stop them (the Russians)? We have experience. We need one million in defense. Who will feed a million-strong army? If Europe says Ukraine is defending not only itself but also European values, then logically, let’s all support this army because Ukraine’s budget won’t sustain a million-strong army. When I talk about Russian assets, I’m looking for less painful alternatives," he added.
He also commented on the idea of deploying foreign troops in Ukraine.
"As for contingents, it’s not just someone standing by. No, I don’t support such an idea. I support the idea of a contingent as part of security guarantees. Since they (the Russians) have an army of 1.5 million, and if we have half that size, it means we need contingents with a very large number of soldiers," he explained.
When asked by journalists about the size of such a contingent, with 200,000 being suggested as an example, Zelenskyy replied: "200,000 from all Europeans is the minimum; otherwise, it’s nothing."
"Otherwise, it’s like when we had the OSCE and no one knew how they could help. They just had offices and that’s it," he added.
On Putin’s ultimatums
Journalists asked Zelenskyy about the so-called "Istanbul agreements" often mentioned by Putin. The Ukrainian president responded, "There are no Turkish negotiations because I’m the president, I’m the negotiator, and in Russia, Putin is the negotiator. So, I’ve never met with Putin in Türkiye."
"Some people came in the early days of the occupation - some from Ukraine - with papers and handed me an ultimatum from Putin. It was the same document, with some changes, in Türkiye. They said I must step down; they would replace me with the pro-Russian Medvedchuk. So, I’m no longer the president. For me, this isn’t a problem; our people will vote. I mean, this isn’t the goal. All of Donbas would be Russia; we must recognize that. Then, we must recognize the Russian language, vote, and amend our Constitution to adopt a neutral status, reduce the army to 50,000, and hand over all weapons, including artillery; everything within 20 km must be destroyed and handed over to them. So, there were never any negotiations; it was an ultimatum from a murderer," Zelenskyy emphasized.
He added that he sent those people away. Subsequently, he said, "Belarus wanted to organize something, to negotiate something, but again they issued an ultimatum."
"Then in Türkiye, they wanted to organize something, and President Erdoğan asked me: ‘Please, they need to sit down and talk.’ I said: ‘Fine, if you want, they can talk.’ They came and issued another ultimatum. So, we can’t say we had any negotiations because all three times, they were ultimatums from Putin," Zelenskyy stressed.
How Trump could force Putin to negotiate
According to Zelenskyy, Trump could "effectively impose total sanctions - he knows how to do that - withdraw maximum energy resources, reduce global prices; he would do it without making any offers."
Zelenskyy also believes Trump could tell Putin that if he doesn’t stop the war, Trump will transfer all the weapons Ukraine requests.
"Of course, not nuclear weapons, we are reasonable people," he added.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also delivered a special address at the World Economic Forum in Davos. During his speech, he emphasized the importance of a strong Europe and explained why Ukraine needs strong security guarantees.
