"Peace is better than war, but not at any cost": Zelenskyy stated that there is no agreement yet and indicated what is needed for its effectiveness
Kyiv • UNN
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy indicated what is needed for a peace agreement to be effective. He emphasized that a just and lasting peace with strong security guarantees is important for Ukraine.
Peace is better than war, but not at any cost. A peace agreement exists when it is not only on paper, when it is signed by leaders, when the war is stopped - that means there is an agreement. Today there is no agreement, said President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday, writes UNN.
Peace is better than war, but not at any cost, because we have already paid a high price. For us, a just, lasting peace is important, so that it cannot be violated by another desire of Putin or another Putin.
The President emphasized that "yes, it is very important to have strong security guarantees for this, to make it impossible even to think about and physically be able to come to us with aggression again."
Therefore, it's not just an agreement, whether it's good or bad. The question is for whom, (...) for whom it's good, (...) for whom it's bad. I honestly don't want to characterize it. It may not exist. It doesn't exist today. There is no agreement today. It exists when it's not just on paper, when it's signed by leaders, when the war is stopped - that means there is an agreement.
And he pointed out: "Because, well, the Budapest Memorandum - I don't consider that to have been an agreement. I consider it to have been a piece of paper. Why? Because of the aggression, because our territories were occupied, and many people died. And this agreement did not protect us. So, I don't consider it, well, strong or effective. Therefore, for me, an agreement is not just about signing."
"Many things, there are several agreements, several documents, security guarantees from the United States of America and Europeans. Voted on, supported in Congress," the President pointed out.
According to him, "it is also necessary to know the details of what will happen if the 'Russians' come with aggression, start another war, how Americans, Europeans, how they will react." "How Ukrainians will react is already clear. How partners will react, what deterrence package Ukraine will have, what will be located on the territory of Ukraine, how our army will be equipped, how strong, what reserves we will have, what we can count on, what package of sanctions will be introduced simultaneously against the aggressor. That is why here it is not about 'agreement' - neither good nor bad. I believe that the agreement should be fair and effective for Ukraine," Zelenskyy emphasized.