Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that Crimea, annexed by Russia in 2014, can only be restored to Ukrainian sovereignty through diplomatic means. Speaking to Fox News in an interview aired Wednesday, Zelenskyy emphasized the heavy toll a military campaign to retake the peninsula would impose on Ukrainian lives, deeming it an unviable option.
“We cannot afford to lose tens of thousands of people to reclaim Crimea militarily, and even then, success is uncertain,” Zelenskyy said via an interpreter. He reiterated Ukraine’s firm stance against ceding any territory to Russia, declaring, “Ukraine cannot legally acknowledge any occupied territory as Russian.”
Russia seized Crimea in 2014 following the ousting of Ukraine’s pro-Russian president during a popular uprising. In 2022, Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, capturing around 20% of its territory and claiming to annex four provinces, none of which it fully controls.
Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine remains committed to regaining Crimea diplomatically. He also pointed to his broader peace initiative, which calls for Russian troop withdrawals, security guarantees, and Ukraine’s eventual NATO membership—proposals Moscow has dismissed outright.
Despite the challenges, Zelenskyy remains steadfast in rejecting compromise over Ukraine’s territorial integrity. “Diplomacy is the path forward for Crimea,” he concluded, underscoring the necessity of strategic negotiations to restore sovereignty without further loss of life.
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