Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said during an interview on Ukrainian television on Thursday evening that he hopes that the unpredictability of future US President Donald Trump can work to Ukraine’s advantage.
Zelensky described Trump as “strong and unpredictable.” According to the Ukrainian president, these qualities could be decisive in negotiations with Russia to end the war with Ukraine. “I would very much like President Trump’s unpredictability to be primarily aimed at Russia,” Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian president said he believes Trump is genuinely interested in making peace and that Russian President Vladimir Putin is afraid of the president elected in November. Still, Zelensky does not believe the nearly three-year war could end overnight. He also reiterated that all Ukrainian territories occupied by Russia since 2014 must return to Ukraine.
Zelensky also insisted on explicit security guarantees and rejected a Russian proposal to dismantle the Ukrainian army as a condition for peace. He acknowledged that Russia is advancing in eastern Ukraine but attributed this mainly to a lack of troop reserves. According to him, Ukraine is doing everything possible to stabilise the front in January.
Trump has repeatedly criticised US support for Kyiv and said he would end the conflict in a day without going into details. Hostilities in the conflict have also intensified since his victory in the November elections. Both warring parties want to be in the strongest possible negotiation position.
