Zelenskyy rejects Putin's call to downsize Ukraine's Armed Forces: Strong, large army is best

Kyiv will not agree to reduce the size of its Armed Forces even if Ukraine receives an invitation to join NATO, and without security guarantees, any reduction in the army is unacceptable, Zelenskyy asserts. 

Source: Zelenskyy at a meeting with journalists in Brussels in the evening on 18 December, as reported by European Pravda 

Details: Speaking about possible security guarantees within the framework of peace agreements, Zelenskyy reiterated that the best guarantee for Ukraine would be NATO membership, so Ukraine is continuing to work on obtaining an invitation to join.

Meanwhile, he is looking into all potential forms of guarantees, including sanctions and financial assurances.

However, the president stressed that none of this is enough to guarantee that Putin would not go to war again.

He stated that this is why Ukraine has no intention of agreeing to a reduction in its armed forces.

Zelenskyy stated that the best security guarantee was a powerful and large army, the largest in Europe. He stressed that Ukraine had no reason to limit the strength of its army, even while it pursued NATO membership. He also emphasised that Ukraine would remain vulnerable as long as it was not a member of NATO.

Zelenskyy asserted the need to ensure a strong economy as part of the guarantees, including funding for Ukraine's budget deficit during the war. The President underlined Kyiv's success in tackling this issue, noting that they knew how to close the gap in 2025.

Background:

• Zelenskyy confirmed that Keith Kellogg, Trump's future special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, will visit Ukraine before the inauguration of the new US president.
• Also in Brussels, Zelenskyy stated that the idea of deploying a peacekeeping mission in Ukraine had been discussed during meetings, noting that there had already been a positive reaction to this from some partners.
• In late November, Russian leader’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Vladimir Putin would not be satisfied with a freezing of the war, although he was supposedly ready for talks.
• He also stressed that Russia has the same list of demands as it did in 2022: to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO or having NATO troops on Ukrainian soil; to reduce the size of the Armed Forces, and not to restrict the use of the Russian language.

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