Zelenskyy: all of us must be destroyed to meet Russia’s ultimatum

Kateryna Tyshchenko - Monday, 21 March 2022, 19:34

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy claims that the Russian ultimatum can be met only if all of Ukraine is destroyed.

Source: Zelenskyy, interview with European public broadcasters, quoted by Suspilne

Quote: " ‘[Russians say] We have an ultimatum, here are the conditions, do it, and then we end the war’. This is wrong and doesn't lead anywhere. This is not about me. This is about the unity of the people and the government. We, together, are not able to do that. Ukraine cannot meet this ultimatum. We physically cannot do it."

"How can you do that? All of us have to be destroyed, then their ultimatum is met by default.

For example, [Russian authorities say] ‘give us Kharkiv, give us Mariupol, give us Kyiv’. Neither Kharkiv residents, nor Mariupol residents, nor Kyivites, nor the President are capable of doing that. One may observe this in the occupied cities: in Melitopol, Berdyansk, in this area. When they invaded, people didn't surrender to them. When they raise the flag, people take it down. They [Russian forces] killed a man – yes, people made it to the shelter, but left it at night, and took down the flag.

What do you want? To destroy all of us? Which is why I replied: we can meet their ultimatum only when there are none of us left."

Details: The full version of Zelenskyy's interview will be available on suspilne.media on Monday night, on the ‘Suspilne News’ Youtube channel, and broadcast during the national telethon.

Background: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine would not compromise its territorial integrity and sovereignty on 20 March.

Additional Background:

On 17 March, Mykhailo Podoliak, Adviser to the Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, said that reviewing the controversial points of a peace agreement may take several days to a week and a half of negotiations with Russia. Then the preparatory work for a possible meeting between the Presidents of Ukraine and Russia may begin.

Russian President Vladimir Putin articulates Russia's demands as follows: Ukraine's neutral and non-nuclear status; demilitarisation and denazification; recognition of the occupied Crimea as Russian; and the sovereignty of the so-called "Donetsk People's Republic" and "Luhansk People's Republic."