Putin a murderer: Zelenskyy
Vladimir Putin is no madman but a murderous aggressor enabled by the world’s failure to curb his behaviour in the years before the Ukraine invasion, Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said.
The Ukrainian president, in an interview with Piers Morgan in the capital Kyiv, also ruled out any territorial concessions in order to buy peace with Moscow, an outcome that has been suggested by Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, and other leaders.
Speaking with his wife Olena at his side, Zelenskyy, 44, also spoke about his marriage, saying the war has made their relationship stronger, despite long periods of separation. Summing up Putin’s war on Ukraine, Zelenskyy said: ‘‘It seems to me the scariest thing about it is that he is in fact sane, and he understands what he’s doing. He knows how many people he kills. He knows how many people were raped, and by who, and the number of children killed or deported.
‘‘The world allowed this situation to develop, it allowed such a person to emerge, with that ideology and attitude towards people. The world should understand that this result – this mistake, to allow this situation – is the responsibility of the whole world.’’
Ukrainians could never countenance the surrender of land to appease Putin, Zelenskyy said, adding that his citizens ‘‘hate’’ the invaders.
‘‘They hate and it is understandable. When so many families have lost their neighbours, their children. Can Russia give a child back? There are no emotions, only one emotion: hate,’’ he said.
He added: ‘‘We are not prepared to exchange or trade the territory of the independent state of Ukraine.’’ When asked about the departure of the strongly proUkraine Boris Johnson as prime minister, Zelenskyy said he was concerned that a successor might not be so supportive.
‘‘To be honest, I am worried about it,’’ he said. ‘‘We would like to have at least the same level of support . . . because my personal relationship with Boris accelerated the level of British support that was provided. The British were the leaders in this kind of support.’’
Zelenskyy spoke lovingly of his 44-year-old wife, whom he met when they were students in Kryvyi Rih 26 years ago, and who has emerged from her previously discreet existence to rally support for the country around the world. The couple revealed that for security reasons, Zelenskyy had not been able to see their children Oleksandra, 18, and Kyrylo, nine, since the February 24 invasion.
– The Times