"We have a window for negotiations, because every month they [the Russians] will lose more and more people, and through this, they will lose the initiative on the battlefield."
Photo: Byron Smith/Getty Images
Volodymyr Zelenskyy believes that Ukraine has a "window of opportunity" for negotiations with Russia on ending the war until next winter.
In an interview with CBS News, he was asked to comment on the statement by Brigadier General, Commander of the Third Army Corps Andriy Biletskyi, that Ukraine has 6-9 months to seize the initiative on the battlefield from Russia and strengthen its positions for peace talks, writes "Ukrayinska Pravda".
Zelenskyy replied: "Yes, that's true." According to him, Russia began to lose the initiative on the battlefield in December 2025, and he shared this information with American partners.
"In January, I told them [partners] that, in my opinion, we have a window for negotiations, because every month they [the Russians] will lose more and more people, and through this, they will lose the initiative on the battlefield.
Now they have started attacking us with massive missile strikes, and again, the main reason they did this is that they are starting to lose on the battlefield. In a month, they were not able to occupy more territory than they lost during the same month.
Therefore, we now have this period of time before winter. So I believe that… before winter we need to find a way, a diplomatic way, to sit down and talk. But this depends on pressure on Putin, pressure within his society, and I think it is increasing, pressure with sanctions — not to lift them, but to introduce new ones. This is good, this is the diplomatic path."
Reflecting on who could represent Europe in peace talks on Ukraine, Zelenskyy mentioned a "three-country format."
"These three countries are Great Britain, France, and Germany. These three countries, in my opinion, can act as negotiators. But we also have good partners from Nordic countries, and, as you know, Turkey has always wanted to be a mediator, and we even took some successful steps when we returned our prisoners of war. This is also very important. But who will be in the end? Ukraine and Europe must decide who it will be, and it is also important that Russia is ready for negotiations, for dialogue and for Europe," added the President of Ukraine.
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