On Monday, Zelenskyy said in a post on X that Putin was already waging World War III and Ukraine is the only “outpost” stopping him — for now.
While sharp public statements have always been part of Zelenskyy’s political brand, the Ukrainian leader’s growing public anger with the peace process is palpable, Kyiv-based political analyst Volodymyr Fesenko said.
“His temperament calls for faster solutions. That’s where impatience and irritation come from,” Fesenko said.
As he addressed the nation on the eve of the invasion anniversary, Zelenskyy urged Trump to visit Ukraine to witness the struggle with his own eyes, and see who must be pressured. Any peace talks, he said, must not “nullify” years of sacrifice by his people, and any deal must be accepted by Ukrainians. “Putin has not achieved his goals,” Zelenskyy added. “He has not broken Ukrainians.”
After four grueling years, Russia controls 20% of his country’s territory, chipping away at its eastern frontiers in a war of attrition that has now lasted longer than the Soviet Union’s fight against Nazi Germany.
Despite Ukraine’s recent gains, neither side has launched a major offensive in months. And the battlefield toll on both sides is approaching nearly half a million dead and 1.5 million wounded or missing, according to a staggering estimate released last month.
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