President Zelensky fears conflict with Russia has no end
(Baonghean.vn)- President Volodymyr Zelensky fears that the Russia-Ukraine conflict will have no end, as Kiev's allies are increasingly tired after nearly two years of war and the Kremlin increasingly expresses confidence in victory.
Zelensky said he had rejected the military's request to mobilize up to 500,000 Ukrainians for the army, an unpopular proposal that could further erode Mr Zelensky's vote share among Ukrainians.
His meeting with local and foreign journalists capped a difficult year in Ukraine, with Ukrainian forces under pressure on the front line and allies wavering on military and financial support. “Nobody knows the answer,” Zelensky told reporters when asked whether the war with Russia could end next year. “Even our respected people, our commanders and our Western partners, who say this is a war that has been going on for years, they don’t know,” he added.
President Zelensky wants to hold talks with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to “find a solution” to the disagreement between the two sides, while expressing confidence that Washington will still provide aid. “I believe that the United States will not betray us,” the Ukrainian leader affirmed.
But hours later, Democratic and Republican leaders in the US Senate said Washington would not be able to approve new aid to Ukraine before the end of the year as the two sides continued to seek concessions.
With the US election looming next year, President Zelensky acknowledged that the results of the November poll could have a “very strong impact” on the course of the war, while assessing that Republican Party favorite Donald Trump “will definitely have a different policy” than incumbent President Joe Biden.
President Zelensky is facing growing discontent at home and is once again feeling political pressure. Recent polling shows that confidence among Ukrainians has fallen to 62% from 84% a year ago, when Ukrainian forces were celebrating victories in the east and south. This year’s counteroffensive has been much more modest, with only a handful of villages in the south and east recaptured after months of fighting against entrenched Russian forces.
Despite recent setbacks, Ukrainians remain overwhelmingly supportive of both the armed forces and their commander, General Valery Zaluzhny. In a sign of growing political divisions, Kiev residents gathered in the city center to demand more money to help the army retake territory.
