Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that he is "not ready" to give up territories, although he admits that such demands from Russia have already been heard.
"Are we ready to give up our territories for peace? We are not ready to give up our territories. I wouldn't want to get into a situation where I have to think about it and really answer this question. We have already given the lives of many people to save the state. We owe them at least ... But that's life, and it happens in different ways," Zelensky said in an interview on CBS's "60 Minutes" program published Monday by the Office of the President of Ukraine.
"We understand the Russian side. They say: recognize Crimea as Russian territory ... I certainly won't recognize it. And then they say: let's solve the Donbas issue. And the appetite has grown there, they want all of Donbas. And then they occupied the Kherson region and would be happy to take the south. Such issues will be raised at the meeting with Putin, if there is one," the president said.
Asked what would constitute a victory for him, Zelensky said: "It will be felt by our people. They will come back. People coming back is the lifeblood of the body. Without them there is nothing and no sense in territories. The people will come back, the bombing will end, we will get our territories and the military back. There will be no Russia on them. Yes, I understand that they Russians won't come out of Crimea. I understand that we will fight and bargain for territories in the east, in Donbas, for a long time. The people will come back, the tanks will leave, then it will be a victory.
