Russian invasion
Zelenskyy hints at possible political solution around Crimea
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy speaks at an Independence Day celebration. photo
© —/kyodo/dpa
Ukraine has repeatedly shown its determination to reconquer the Crimean Peninsula, which had been annexed by Russia. Now President Zelenskyj also holds out the prospect of a negotiated solution.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy believes a negotiated solution for Crimea, which has been annexed by Russia since 2014, is possible. “When we’re at the administrative borders Crimea, I think it is possible to politically force Russia’s demilitarization on the territory of the peninsula,” he said in an interview on Sunday, which was picked up by several Ukrainian media outlets on Monday morning. In the past, Kiev has repeatedly emphasized its determination to Retake Crimea militarily.
Ukrainian soldiers are currently on the offensive in the south of the country, trying to win back occupied areas and push forward to the Crimean coast. After that, the peninsula could also be conquered.
However, according to Zelenskyy, a political solution for Crimea would be better because it would involve fewer victims. At the same time, Zelenskyy emphasized in the interview that he did not want to shift the war to Russian territory. The aim is the liberation of their own territories. If, on the other hand, Ukraine advances far into Russian territory, there is a risk of quickly losing the support of Western partners and having to fight Russia alone.
Russian propagandists have repeatedly justified the need to continue the war with the fact that if Russia were to lose, there would be a risk of division and occupation by foreign forces.
In recent months, Russian border regions have repeatedly come under fire from Ukraine. However, the damage is disproportionate to the Russian attacks on Ukrainian territory. In addition, there were no large-scale offensives on Russian territory from the Ukrainian side with the aim of occupying the regions permanently.