Ukrainian President Volodimir Zelenski said “we hope that we can finish this war this year” on the third anniversary of the full -scale invasion of Russia.
But he warned that Ukraine needed security guarantees to prevent Moscow from returning, suggesting that EU and NATO membership would help. Russia has consistently opposed the idea of Ukraine to join NATO.
Early Zelenski said the peace deal with Russia could start with a “complete” exchange of prisoners of war.
Zelenski spoke at the top of European leaders, plus Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who were in Kiev to show their support.
In a press conference, Zelenski was asked what his hopes for Ukraine and her people were after three years of war.
“We hope that we can finish the war this year,” he replied, adding that this was “very difficult” for the whole nation.
In the short term, he said Ukraine needs security guarantees to prevent Russia from returning for years.
Joining the EU and NATO will soon “help us,” he added.
Recently, Zelenski said he would be ready to stand out as a president if Ukraine was made a NATO member in return. Russia said it would not accept this as part of the peace deal.
He was asked about the United States and his relationship with President Donald Trump several times, but did not answer directly. Zelenski said he hoped “the United States will continue to support, like all partners.”
Last week, Trump called the Ukrainian president “dictator” and said he did the “terrible work” of the leading Ukraine. It was followed by Zelenski, saying that Trump “lives in a misinformation space”, managed by Moscow.
Trump has repeatedly called for “Fast Peace” – the termination of hostilities that will see Ukraine make significant discounts to Russia.
Zelenski also said the full prisoner of the military exchange with Russia could be the “start” of the war.
There are 60 exchanges of prisoners between the two countries since the beginning of the war, including one in December, including hundreds of prisoners.
“This is the fair and fair version,” Zelenski said, noting that there are thousands of Ukrainians in Russia – some that were held after the Crimea invasion of 2014.
Ukraine does not publish the number of prisoners of war holding Russia, but it is believed that the total number is more than 8,000.
The participants at the summit included European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council President Antonio Costa and Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Finland, Norway, Spain and Sweden.
Other leaders, including the United Kingdom, Germany and Japan, spoke with a video connection. There were no signs of US representation.
Trudeau said that “it may no longer mean this world” – in the apparent reference to the latest high -level conversations between Russia and the United States.
Danish Prime Minister Met Fredericksen said he was “open” to send peacekeeping troops to Ukraine if and when the war was over, but he added that “many questions should be answered.”
“In this struggle for survival, not only the fate of Ukraine is at risk. This is the fate of Europe,” writes von der Leyen at X.
At the press conference, she said Ukraine could join the European Union before 2030 if the speed and quality of its reforms continued.
The summit happened before the meeting of French President Emmanuel Macron with Trump in Washington, where Ukraine was expected to be on the agenda.
Tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians have died since Russia began its full -scale invasion three years ago, while large parts of Ukraine were destroyed.