Zelensky said that after Russia’s war of aggression ends, Ukraine will use its military experience for the security of Europe and NATO. Their war-hardened soldiers could even replace US troops in Europe, he said. This proposal is apparently aimed at the USA. They hope to scale back their involvement on the European continent – whether under a Republican or Democratic government. But the Ukrainian proposal would require complicated coordination between Washington, European capitals and Kiev.
Zelensky had already presented this plan, including other non-public parts, in Washington, London, Paris, Rome and Berlin. A presentation at the European Council in Brussels is planned for Thursday. The Ukrainian president hopes to build a bridge to a second peace summit, this time with Russia’s participation – and to end the war on his terms next year.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that he had not followed Zelensky’s speech, but that it was a dictate from the USA. Behind this there is nothing other than the American intention to continue the war and “fight against us until the last Ukrainian,” said Peskov. He said that an end to the war would only be possible when Ukraine recognized what he called the lack of prospects in its politics. Russia had always emphasized that it would fight the war until all goals were achieved, including the complete annexation of the Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, which Moscow only partially controls.
The plan with “brazen and provocative demands” is a classic attempt to drag the West into a direct war with Russia – with the prospect of a transition to World War III, said the head of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the State Duma in Moscow, Leonid Slutsky. In this way, Zelenskyj wants to give up responsibility for the destruction of the Ukrainian people and blame the West for the failure. It is not a “victory plan,” but rather a “plan to save oneself from defeat.” Zelensky did not make a proposal to resolve the conflict.
The pro-Western opposition criticized the lack of Ukrainian participation in Zelensky’s “victory plan”. “The message was only about demands on the partners, and there was not a word about our homework so that we meet the criteria of the NATO states,” wrote MP Iryna Herashchenko from ex-President Petro Poroshenko’s faction on Telegram. The president didn’t say a word about fighting corruption. The plan is not very realistic and seems like a framework without content. “How are we supposed to win? Our partners won’t do that for us,” she said. Her parliamentary group colleague Olexij Honcharenko agreed with her and pointed out the lack of concrete steps. “In this ‘plan’ there is no plan. It is a series of slogans and nothing more,” he wrote. It seems as if someone else should do everything for the Ukrainians.
