Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky has said he will not cede his country’s eastern territory to Russia to end the war.
In an interview with CNN on Friday, President Zelensky said he would not cede the Donbass region, which is currently occupied by Russian forces, to Moscow, as Vladimir Putin could use the territory to launch a new attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.
“[W]We understand that the fact that we fought with them and they left, and they fled from Kyiv … from the north, from Chernigov and from this direction … this does not mean that they can take Donbass, they will not reach farther to Kyiv, “he told CNN’s Jake Tapper during an interview at the presidential palace.
Russia annexed Crimea, a region in southern Ukraine, in 2014 and recognized a pro-Moscow separatist government in southeastern Donbass. The area was used as a base for Russia for the invasion.
The Ukrainian leader also spoke to CNN about his ongoing partnership with President Joe Biden. The White House has confirmed that Biden has no plans to travel to Ukraine, unlike British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
“Do you want President Biden to come here?” Mr. Tapper asked.
Mr Zelenski confirmed that he had done so. “I think he will. “It’s his decision, of course, about the security situation, but I think he’s the leader of the United States, so he has to come,” he said.
Russian and Ukrainian government officials met to discuss a peace agreement, but no agreement was reached. The two countries continue to fight for territory in eastern Ukraine, even as Russian forces withdraw from areas near Kyiv after facing stiff resistance.
Fighting continues in the besieged port city of Mariupol, where Russian forces are trying to defeat Ukrainian troops in street-to-street battles. The city has witnessed some of the heaviest fighting, and Ukrainian authorities say there has been a deliberate attack on civilians by Russian forces.
Russia’s defense officials have vowed to “destroy” Ukrainian forces in Mariupol, but the Kremlin’s ability to take over the city remains in question after failing to take over Kyiv.
Accurate figures for the victims are difficult to estimate, but Zelensky’s government says Russia has lost up to 20,000 so far amid efforts to undertake some of Ukraine’s main civilian efforts.
“As for our military, from the number we have, we think we lost 2,500 to 3,000 compared to the Russian military, which lost about 19,000 to 20,000,” he told CNN. “This is the comparison. But we have about 10,000 wounded and it is difficult to say how many will survive.
Last week, Ukrainian troops took credit for striking Russian destroyer Moscow off the coast of Mariupol. The ship later sank while being towed to Russian territory.
Moscow claims that the destruction of the Moscow, the flagship of the Russian Black Sea Fleet, was the result of a fire in an ammunition depot.
The Kremlin also faces war crimes charges, with reports of targeted killings, kidnappings and rapes in Ukraine. The Ukrainian government has described the atrocities as genocide, a statement echoed by Mr Biden.
The bodies of hundreds of civilians were found by Ukrainian troops in Bucha as they regained areas previously under Russian control. Some victims appear to have been killed as executions by Russian forces after being found shot dead.
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