Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at a press conference in Rome that his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin wants to prolong the war, UNIAN reports.
"Our intelligence, the intelligence of our partners, has all the information that Russia will continue to prolong this war. Putin refuses all opportunities to establish a real ceasefire. He does not want real peace. Putin is addicted to war and murder, and only real force can make him give up this addiction. Therefore, our defense in Ukraine must be strong enough," Zelensky stressed.
He said that most of the meetings were devoted to strengthening Ukraine. They also talked about the sanctions against Russia being strong enough.
The head of state also noted that Putin could spend $300 billion on the war next year.
"If you add up all the budgets of one Russian soldier, he gets from $6,000 to $8,000. Imagine how much Russia pays for this war. One soldier, a Russian contract soldier, gets exactly that much. Putin is counting on an army of a million and a half. He wants an army of a million and a half. He has 1.2 million. What can stop this money? How will he pay in such quantities? We believe that it can spend 300 billion on the war next year," Zelensky said.
At the same time, according to the Ukrainian president, sanctions will stop Putin's ability to finance the war.
"And of course, we need to talk about increasing the funding of our soldiers," Zelensky emphasized.
He noted that today he spoke openly about this at a meeting of the "Coalition of the Willing".
"We need to have a strong army. Of course, and move towards a contract army. Absolutely. This is right. This is the moment until we have an end to the war. The first stage is a ceasefire. How it will be further, I cannot tell you. But strong sanctions will affect the desire of the Russians to talk, but really talk, with a result, and not just hide behind a prisoner exchange," Zelensky stressed.
He noted that now Russia has no desire to end the war. According to him, US President Donald Trump also sees this reluctance on the part of Russia.
"I don't know if he will change his mind. I can't tell you. I am grateful to him for today's opinion. For the signals he is giving. He gave it at meetings and is giving it today in the media space," Zelensky said.
As the President of Ukraine said, the sanctions against Russia, which are currently being discussed in the United States, affect many areas. First of all, energy, as well as other countries that are importers of Russian energy resources.
"This affects many aspects and many countries. "It seems to me that strong, correct steps can force these countries to influence the Russians after the end of the war," Zelensky believes.