In an open letter, Zelensky offers Putin a meeting: you know from history – when Russia is tired, changes come
AFP/Scanpix/Volodymyr Zelensky
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote an open letter to Russian leader Vladimir Putin.
In it, V. Zelensky calls for ending the war and moving to direct negotiations at the level of leaders.
When you came to power in Russia more than 26 years ago, you were looked upon favorably by many people in Ukraine. So it was. But that is in the past.
Now the vast majority of Ukrainians welcome the fact that our long-range drones, having covered a distance of more than 1,000 kilometers, visited the opening of your forum in St. Petersburg. As you well know, that distance is not the limit of our possibilities.
During the 26 years you have spent in power, the agenda of Ukraine-Russia relations has completely changed. From discussions of commerce and other civil matters, our nations have passed to almost exclusively talk of blows and losses.
You spent almost half of your 26 years in power at war with Ukraine.
Whatever you say about NATO, geopolitics, or the Russian language, this war is your personal choice, a war for no real reason. This is how history will remember him.
That year could have been very different.
We often hear that this war is acceptable to you. Of course, not when it comes to the security of your residence in Valdai or a parade in Moscow. Your own life is precious to you.
But now we can all see that the Russians are finally coming to terms with this reality – with the fact that the war is causing more and more negative consequences for Russia.
They don’t like our drones and missiles.
They do not like the shortage of gasoline and the ever-rising prices.
They don’t like constant restrictions.
They don’t like your intention to launch a second wave of mobilization to extend the war to the other side of Ukraine or to use it against other countries neighboring Russia.
They don’t like the fact that there is no end in sight to your war.
Yes, you can still make the Russians live in these conditions. However, your resources are running low.
You will not have enough money or political capital left to continue buying Russian loyalty as you have done for the past 26 years.
And we will do everything possible to bring the world closer to that moment.
As you yourself like to say, “you have to do the math”.
Yesterday I received a report on the losses of your troops on the Ukrainian front in May. Again the number exceeded 30,000 dead and seriously wounded Russian soldiers. We maintain this level month after month, and we have videos to back up every single one of your losses – these are not empty claims.
We know that 63 percent of your losses on the battlefield are killed and only 37 percent are wounded. In the 21st century, no army can afford such a ratio. And the number of dead will continue to grow.
It’s not like we in Ukraine care about the fate of Russian soldiers after all that your war has brought to our country.
But I care about Ukrainians.
We lose our people and every loss is painful for us. Even if the ratio of Ukrainian losses to Russian losses is one to five or one to six, it is still very important.
It is also important that you regularly postpone your self-imposed deadlines for the occupation of our regions, especially the Donetsk region, every few months. And this year you won’t take it either.
But we in Ukraine do not want a permanent war. We know very well that life without war is infinitely better. And we want to achieve it.
I’m sure most Russians would respond positively to that as well – and you know it.
Many did not believe that Ukraine would be able to hold out for so long. You didn’t believe it. And those who advised you did not believe either. It was a mistake.
You did not expect the full resistance of Ukraine and you did not foresee that everything would go this far. Yet here we all are, in the fifth year of this full-scale war.
Don’t be afraid to take the path that leads out of this war. This is the main thing that is required of you now.
Ukraine has preserved its independence. And will save it. Despite all predictions to the contrary.
We have gathered many people around the world to stand on the side of Ukraine and against you. We found the weapons and funding we needed.
We are getting support. You get sanctioned. And it will continue until Ukraine gets justice – the justice that we seek and that can be achieved.
We will not let those who try to convince you that sanctions against Russia will be significantly eased and support for Ukraine will be significantly reduced, even though your position on Ukraine has not fundamentally changed. Orban’s example shows how those who decide to help Russia in their fight against us end up in disgrace.
Ukraine endured harsh winters while you tried to destroy our energy system. We held firm – and even in the dark, the resilience of the Ukrainians remained intact.
We brought the war to your territory, and you would not have been able to deal with it without the help of North Korea. You are the first Russian ruler to turn to Pyongyang for help.
And today you are completely dependent on China – also for the first time in the history of Russia.
You believed that the Ukrainians would not have the strength to defend themselves. But today, our people are helping our partners in the Middle East and the Persian Gulf build their defense systems.
You expected internal unrest in Ukraine. Instead, it was your own military units that rebelled against you. June 23 there will be another anniversary of that event, and silence will not erase this fact from history.
And now it is you that your own officials, businessmen and propagandists are looking at with obvious weariness. The world sees it.
The world is not tired of Ukraine, as you might expect. But Russia fatigue is growing, even among the people of the world who help you circumvent sanctions and keep your economy afloat.
You can’t miss it. After 26 years in power, age is starting to take its toll. And over time, fatigue towards you will only increase.
We have seen intelligence reports indicating that you are now considering plans to continue the war into 2027 and 2028. We also know that you expect ballistic missiles to achieve what everything else has failed to achieve. You want to draw Belarus even deeper into this war, and now we are forced to prepare for that as well. We see that you are trying to organize something around Transnistria. Your propagandists threaten every country neighboring Russia in one way or another. Do you really want to go through all this?
Now the choice is yours.
Enough war.
Ukraine offers to end this war.
This must be done fairly, with dignity and with guarantees that the war will not be renewed.
We can see that the United States is completely focused on the Iran issue, and it would be wrong to simply wait for the war in Europe to become their focus again.
Ukraine offers to end this war through direct negotiations between us and you.
I suggest a meeting.
Everyone has heard your representatives say that I could supposedly come to Moscow. But after these 26 years, the leader of Ukraine has nothing to do in your capital – just like the leader of Russia in Kyiv.
There are countries that traditionally host leaders to resolve issues of war and peace. Switzerland, Turkey, countries of the Arab world – many of them are able and willing to organize such a meeting.
It is the leaders who decide the main issues. It has always been this way and it will always be this way.
I suggest setting a clear date for such a meeting.
We heard that in Alaska you were promised to solve certain issues related to Ukraine and Europe. But you can see for yourself that Ukrainian and European issues are not resolved in Anchorage.
Other willing participants could join the bilateral dialogue that will be established between us.
Since the war is going on in Europe and since Ukraine needs security guarantees, and you also seek security guarantees for yourself, it would be logical to include those who can actually be guarantors.
We believe that Europe should be part of this process – those who really have the ability to influence the situation.
We also believe that the United States must be part of this process. This could help shape a new security architecture in our part of the world.
We already have experience with many agreements with Russia, including the Minsk agreements, which ultimately failed. Therefore, we must first find direct answers to the remaining questions among ourselves, and not hide complex problems behind formulas, technical working groups or wasting endless time on diplomatic trips.
Your war separated Ukraine and Russia forever.
Today, the front line is where diplomacy must begin.
Ukraine is ready for a complete ceasefire during the negotiations. This is common practice, and current events with Iran only reinforce this argument. Trying to achieve true silence is the best way to start talking to each other. We believe that this would not be just a test, but a real ceasefire, if you will.
You know that the United States has the capacity to observe a cease-fire along the line where hostilities end.
Ukraine is ready for a full exchange of prisoners of war, and this could be a good prologue to the end of the war.
Serious steps must be taken to return civilians and children abducted during the war.
It is up to us to decide what the future holds for our future generations of Ukrainians and Russians.
Unless you personally come to the conclusion that it is time to end this war, Ukraine will continue to fight for its existence.
But you too will have to fight much harder for your own existence – not Russia’s, but your own. And this is not a threat from me or Ukraine. It’s a fact of Russian history that you know well: when Russia gets tired, change comes.
We can contribute to that fatigue.
You can stop your war.
Eternal memory to all those whose lives were taken by this war.
