Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council Oleksandr Lytvynenko said that Ukraine is aware that the war with Russia will end in negotiations.
He said this in a video address to the participants of the Baltic Sea Region Forum: NATO 2024 and Arctic Europe.
Lytvynenko said that Russian aggression continues, and Ukraine is its key, but not the only target. Russians want to change the entire world order. Russians understand only one language - the language of force. And in order to survive, the Western world must be strong and ready to use this strength.
The NSDC Secretary stressed that the situation at the front is extremely difficult, but "far from catastrophic". The defence forces continue to fight hard and exhausting battles for small villages and towns in Donetsk and Zaporizhzhya Regions. What is much worse is that the Russians are directing their air force against critical infrastructure, using the strategy tested in Syria to provoke a migration crisis.
"This can be stopped. But Ukraine needs modern weapons, lots of them. First of all, we are short of air defence systems and ammunition," Lytvynenko said.
"Ukraine is clearly aware that the war will end in negotiations. That is why President Zelenskyy's peace formula has been prepared and is being promoted. Our position is very simple, and I am convinced that it will be supported by the time of the Peace Summit in Switzerland in June 2024. This is a real diplomatic track that has every chance of contributing to a just peace," the NSDC Secretary added.
He stressed that Ukraine needs not "a 2-year truce, but a sustainable peace for decades, which would enable Ukraine's development".
"And this is a matter of security guarantees. The security agreements implementing last year's G7 statement are without a doubt an important step. And we highly appreciate the efforts of President Stubb and the entire Finnish people, who know better than anyone the critical importance of security for Russia's neighbours. However, Ukraine needs guarantees, and the Finnish example clearly demonstrates that today there is only one real guarantee in Europe - NATO membership. That is why we hope to receive an invitation to join the Alliance at this year's NATO Washington Summit," added Lytvynenko.