The wings of his plane under the carpet of the wind, Volodymyr Zelensky travels, travels. After a triptych London-Paris-Brussels in February, the Ukrainian president went to Finland yesterday before taking off for The Hague. Another trip, to Berlin next week, would be planned. Far from a year 2022 during which the former actor had waited ten months of war before going to Washington under guard.
The timing of his move, while the Ukrainian troops are waiting for the green light to launch a counter-offensive, does not fail to question. Why does Volodymyr Zelensky begin to increase visits to his allies? What is his diplomatic agenda? Should we see the entry into a new phase of the conflict, with a Ukrainian president less warlord on a daily basis? Alexandra Goujon*, lecturer in political science at the University of Burgundy, answered questions from 20 minutes.
Why does Volodymyr Zelensky start traveling to his allies?
Before going to Washington, Volodymyr Zelensky had spent more than ten months without leaving Ukrainian territory. And if, since then, his travels have been “quite important” for a president at war, according to Alexandra Goujon, the year 2022 has in fact rather marked a parenthesis in his exercise of diplomacy. “He had moved around a lot in 2021”, underlines the specialist in Ukraine, “he knew how important international aid is” as tensions grew with Russia. At the time, the Ukrainian president was well known, and his movements went unnoticed by the international press.
But the former actor has “always had an active diplomacy”, “all over the place”. These trips to his allies even correspond “to what he did during his remote interventions”, estimates the researcher, when Zelensky multiplied videoconferences. With the same objective, by going up a notch thanks to the physical presence: “to avoid weariness of the allies, the installation of a “Ukrainian fatigue”” and “to maintain the pro-Ukrainian coalition”. The watchwords remain the same: “thank and continue to ask for help”, indicates Alexandra Goujon, while including “a form of diversification in its movements”.
Should we see the entry into a new phase of the conflict?
Volodymyr Zelensky’s trip to London, Paris and Brussels dates back nearly three months. Since then, the front line has hardly moved and the Ukrainian general staff has had only one word in its mouth: the counter-offensive. “A month ago, there was a meter of snow in Bakhmout,” recalls Alexandra Goujon. We also had to deal with the thaw, synonymous with mud. It is now a matter of days. The displacement of Volodymyr Zelensky is therefore “not necessarily significant of the phases of the conflict”, she believes. The moment is no safer and quieter than before, given the regular drone attacks. Moreover, as for his trip to Paris, the current visit is a surprise “solely for security reasons”.
But the circumstances do not require the presence of the Head of State to coordinate everything. “Everything relating to military issues is discussed between soldiers”, develops the researcher, indicating that the Allied staffs also come to Ukraine. To Volodymyr Zelensky to take the pilgrim’s staff to continue asking for help. “There are needs for ammunition, and also for financial aid to run the school, the justice system, the Ukrainian state”, indicates the expert.
Is Volodymyr Zelensky preparing for the post-war period with these trips?
“The aftermath is a Western, not Ukrainian obsession,” says Alexandra Goujon. Without a peace plan in sight, “the reconstruction of cities, the question of EU and NATO membership is now,” she says. In kyiv, “we lead everything from the front”. Moreover, the candidacy for the European Union was submitted after the start of the war and accepted in June. “They have a roadmap and want to enter the negotiation phase”, develops the researcher, pointing to the work in progress on the fight against corruption.
The visit of the Ukrainian President to The Hague this Thursday is the perfect illustration of this. “He is at the International Criminal Court to say that justice must move forward, and not wait for the end of the war” to create a special court, argues the academic. As for NATO, “Ukraine has been knocking on the door for a long time” and is trying to “rally countries to the cause”. A visit to a Finland that has just joined is therefore not insignificant.
*Alexandra Goujon is the author of Ukraine, from independence to war, ed. The Blue Rider, 2023.