Editor’s note: The full interview with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy was aired on CNN International’s flagship world affairs show Amanpour on Thursday at 1pm ET.
After a bitter rift with Donald Trump left many in Ukraine worried that the US president had once again sided with Russia, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has addressed the controversy head-on, telling CNN that while there is nothing personal between me and Trump, siding with Vladimir Putin will only “make him stronger.”
Relations between the United States and Ukraine have deteriorated significantly in recent weeks.
Zelenskiy said President Trump was “on the wrong side of history” after announcing an agreement to buy Russian fuel and reversing international efforts to isolate Russia. President Trump subsequently waived some sanctions against Russia, drawing criticism even from his own party. The Ukrainian military has found its access to the Starlink service run by Elon Musk restricted.
In an interview with CNN from Kiev on Thursday, Zelensky struck a conciliatory tone, saying the tensions were “not a personal problem” but warning Putin he had no intention of stopping the war.
“My attitude towards President Putin is very clear. I believe that lifting sanctions will make President Putin even stronger. This is not a personal issue between me and President Trump. Of course, I am against any lifting of sanctions.”
Zelenskiy spoke to CNN as President Trump’s envoys ramped up new diplomatic pressure to find a solution to the four-and-a-half-year conflict.
On Wednesday, U.S. special envoy Stephen Witkoff held a three-hour meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St. Petersburg, sparking controversy by describing his decision to release 74-year-old American prisoner Stephen Hubbard as “humanitarian.” Mr. Witkov had met with Mr. Zelensky in Norway the day before.
Plane carrying US citizen Stephen Hubbard released by Russia arrives in Texas
Plane carrying US citizen Stephen Hubbard released by Russia arrives in Texas
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President Trump argued Wednesday that toughening sanctions against Russia would keep Hubbard in prison. “He may be forgotten, we may never see him again, and he may go back to prison for another 25 years,” he said in response to a question from CNN’s Caitlin Collins.
He added that tougher sanctions would jeopardize the chances of a deal on Ukraine. “When you’re close to a deal and you’re having delicate negotiations, you don’t use sanctions.”
Zelenskiy said the talks in Norway’s capital, Oslo, were productive, but he was not convinced by Putin’s commitment to peace. After Witkov’s visit, Putin agreed to meet in November, although he gave few firm details.
“Putin is playing, you know, he’s a player,” Zelenskiy said.
“It’s a shame because he’s playing with other people’s lives and of course he doesn’t want to[stop the war]. So what we’re asking our partners to do is not give him the chance to get stronger and crush us.”
President Trump said Wednesday that his administration is “the closest we’ve ever been” to resolving the Ukraine war, even though Russia launched hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles against its neighbor overnight.
So far, Putin has also maintained his extremist demands for Ukraine, including territory. “The current fighting is really focused on what happens in the remaining parts of the Donbas region in eastern Ukraine, which are largely under Russian control,” U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters Wednesday. “There are some creative ideas being put forth about how to resolve those differences,” he said.
In an interview with CNN, President Zelenskiy hinted at the possibility of freezing the current front in order to “cease fire, stop the killings, sit down and talk.” However, he made it clear that the idea of Ukraine surrendering the territory currently under its control to Russia was not at an early stage and that Kiev would never recognize the occupied territory as part of Russia.
“Our land is very important because it’s about people. It’s not about a few kilometers,” he said. “So many people died defending this land, defending our independence, defending our country.”
The Ukrainian president added: “No one will recognize these temporarily occupied territories as Russian territory, and I think Russia understands that. I’m sorry if there are people who don’t understand, but it’s up to them.”
Zelenskiy: “If you give Putin anything, he will want anything.”
There have been signs of detente since Kiev accused the United States of restricting information sharing about Russian missile flights, delaying vital Starlink services and delaying arms supplies.
Zelenskiy said earlier this week that intelligence sharing has recovered, but told CNN that SpaceX’s military service, StarShield, has not yet fully recovered.
President Trump said Thursday that Elon Musk restored Ukraine’s access to the military version of the Starlink internet service, although he declined to say whether Musk personally requested it.
However, while some Ukrainian military units said their speeds had increased after the supposed repairs, sources said this was not the case everywhere and not at unlimited speeds. “It’s clearly not enough to intercept a jet-powered drone,” the official told CNN. The official said Ukraine is waiting for information and explanations from the U.S. side about the situation, but has not yet received a response.
Meanwhile, Ukraine has a severe shortage of interceptors, so its military currently has no means of shooting down Russian ballistic missiles despite receiving warnings of incoming missiles.
Ukraine’s president announced late Thursday that Finland would provide Ukraine with a new aid package worth 300 million euros ($336 million). Zelenskiy also said that the two countries agreed to cooperate closely, with Ukraine further leveraging Finland’s satellite capabilities.
“Thank you for supporting our logistics and energy sectors. These are important goals for Russia at the moment, and having more locomotives, more energy equipment and more resources to protect our energy infrastructure will make a real difference,” Zelenskiy said at a joint press conference with Finnish Prime Minister Petteri Orpo.
President Zelenskiy also told CNN on Thursday that Ukraine’s European allies are providing the country with air defense missiles, but “this is not enough to protect itself.”
Zelenskiy said Ukraine currently needs two main things from its allies. This means “not lifting sanctions from President Putin… (and) providing better missiles.”
