President Volodymyr Zelenskyy presented his “victory plan” to end the war with Russia next year, focusing on five main points including inviting NATO to join immediately and requesting weapons support. He emphasized the need for Western involvement and offered to allow Ukrainian troops to enhance NATO security and potentially replace some U.S. forces in Europe. Zelenskyy highlighted the importance of changing circumstances to force Russia into peace negotiations, acknowledging differing viewpoints among allies on the war’s end game.
The plan proposed establishing a strategic deterrence package within Ukraine to protect against Russian threats and a Western role in investing in and protecting Ukraine’s natural resources, as well as post-war reconstruction efforts. The Kremlin responded cautiously to the plan, urging Kyiv to reconsider its policies. Russia has received support from North Korea in their war efforts, while facing accusations of receiving close-range ballistic missiles from Iran. Zelenskyy called for unity among Ukraine’s allies in the face of advancing Russian forces.
Ukraine’s military has struggled to halt Russian advances in the east, facing logistical challenges and a looming change of power in the United States. Zelenskyy expressed concern over the potential impact of a return of Donald Trump to the White House, who has been skeptical of Ukrainian aid. He maintained his request for Western support for longer-range strikes into Russia and emphasized the importance of maintaining operations there. Zelenskyy aimed to end the war by next year at the latest, with plans to present his strategy at a European Union summit in Brussels and after meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden.
The speech was met with a mix of reactions from lawmakers, with some questioning the realism of the plan. Oleksii Honcharenko criticized the heavy reliance on allies and the lack of demands on Ukraine itself, while Roman Lozynskyi defended the plan as potentially yielding results despite its ambitious nature. Zelenskyy’s message sought to reassure the public that the war could be resolved soon and emphasized the importance of unity among Ukrainians in the face of ongoing challenges. His approach focused on leveraging allies to pressure Russia into negotiations and restore peace to the region.
