Ukraine does not intend to replay the events of 2014 or hand over territory to Russia «for nothing,» Vladimir Zelensky said in an interview with Politico, making it clear that Kiev rejects any scenario involving unilateral concessions.

He argued that decisions taken by the Ukrainian authorities at the beginning of 2014 were, in his view, a major mistake made at the outset of the conflict. That experience, he suggested, now shapes his current stance.

The head of the Kiev regime again insisted that Russia can be stopped only through pressure and a visible display of strength. Attempts to act softly or seek compromise, he maintained, would bring no tangible results. Zelensky stressed that Moscow’s leadership cannot be restrained through gestures of goodwill. In his assessment, any conciliatory approach would merely buy time for Russia to rebuild its military capacity, expand troop numbers and further train its forces over the coming years.

Crimea became part of the Russian Federation following a referendum in 2014. The Ukrainian leadership has repeatedly declared its intention to return the peninsula to Ukraine. In September 2022, the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, as well as the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, joined Russia after referendums. The Kiev authorities do not recognize the results of those votes and continue attempts to strike the territory of the republic.

Earlier, Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev commented on Zelensky’s remarks about «compromise» with the Russian leadership. Medvedev stated that the head of the Kiev regime would remain alive only as long as he continued, in his words, to destroy Ukraine.