Zelensky: Ukraine needs long-range weapons to defend its territory

Ukraine's calls for the transfer of long-range weapons to it are aimed at protecting the territory of Ukraine and are not connected with the desire to strike at Russian territory, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with Newsmax TV on Tuesday.

"We are not interested in what is happening in Russia," he said. "We are only interested in our own territory in Ukraine."

At the same time, according to Zelensky, Ukraine's position as a "defensive perimeter" of the world from Russia and Vladimir Putin means that it cannot "concede" anything. "We are not ready to cede any of our territories, because our territories are our territories: this is our independence, our sovereignty, that is the point," he said.

Zelensky acknowledged that "with some territories there are some difficulties, there are some details, but all these difficulties, they could be discussed, and these discussions would be necessary to stop the war."

Donetsk and Luhansk regions, which Putin has tried to declare independent, are non-negotiable for takeover by force, Zelenskiy added, calling for "these difficulties and challenges to be resolved through diplomatic channels."

"If we are talking about ultimatums and 'You must give up a third of your territory, we will leave you alone and let you live" - this is not something we can agree on," Zelensky said.

Ultimately, Russia will run out of will to continue fighting in Ukraine's contested southern and eastern regions, as the world rallies around our sovereignty, Zelensky said. "In the near future, Russia will not be able to control everything in Ukraine," he continued. "And then there is only one way out: occupation by force. There may be negotiations, but there must be a sense, there must be a readiness on the part of Russia to conduct these negotiations."

In addition, the narrative that neighboring countries should not join NATO is a losing battle for Russia and Putin, Zelensky said.

"Putin cannot fight everyone at the same time," he continued. "Either they are not strong enough in the capabilities of their armed forces and will not be able to fight on all fronts."