Volodymyr Zelenskyy has presented his long-awaited “Victory plan” to the Ukrainian Parliament.
The Ukrainian President emphasized the urgency of the victory plan, stating that “If we start moving according to this victory plan now, it may be possible to end the war no later than next year.”
The plan consists of five points and three classified annexes.
“The first point is geopolitical. The second and third points are military. The fourth point is economic. The fifth point is the security plan for victory. The points are timed, very specifically.”
Volodymyr Zelenskyy
The first point, he told lawmakers, was receiving an “unconditional invitation” to join the NATO alliance, which would show “how our partners truly see Ukraine’s place in the security architecture.”
“The very fact of an invitation for Ukraine to NATO can be fundamentally crucial for peace. We understand that NATO membership is a matter of the future, not the present. But Putin must see that his geopolitical calculations are losing. Russians need to feel that their Tsar has lost geopolitically to the world.”
Volodymyr Zelenskyy
He voiced belief that this invitation is a strong decision that requires nothing but determination, adding, “This is why this is the starting point of the victory plan.”
His second point was that Ukraine’s defence forces and weapons must be bolstered from Russian missile and drone attacks, he said, reiterating a call for his country’s allies to lift restrictions on Ukraine’s use of long-range arms on military targets in Russia.
Zelenskyy’s third point was deterrence.
There is also a classified annex under this point, which has already been provided to the leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Italy, and Germany.
Zelenskyy revealed that some additional countries that can contribute to this well-known global concept of deterrence will also receive it.
He said that Ukraine proposes to host a comprehensive non-nuclear strategic deterrence package on its territory, which will be sufficient to protect Ukraine from any military threat from Russia and will narrow Russia’s options to the following prospects; either join an honest diplomatic process for a fair resolution of the war or guarantee the loss of the ability to continue aggressive warfare due to Ukraine’s application of the provided deterrence package according to specified military objectives.
According to Zelenskyy, Russian leadership acts aggressively only when convinced it will not receive an adequate destructive response.
He added that when Russia knows that there will be a response and understands what that response will be, they choose negotiations and stable coexistence even with strategic opponents. “Because of this, deterring Russia from aggression is possible both towards Ukraine and the whole of Europe,” Zelenskyy said.
The plan’s main elements also include a refusal to cede more Ukrainian territory, the continuation of the incursion into the Kursk region of Russia, where Ukraine launched a surprise incursion in August and post-war considerations.
Zelenskyy emphasized that the solution to end the more than two years of war since Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022 was not a frozen conflict and “not a trade-in Ukraine’s territory or sovereignty.”
Russia Dismisses Victory Plan
Russia was quick to dismiss Zelenskyy’s proposal, calling it “some ephemeral peace plan.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the only peace plan there can be is for the “Kyiv regime to realise the futility of the policy it is pursuing and understand the need to sober up.”
Zelenskyy first announced Ukraine’s victory plan in the war in August of this year. It was said that the victory plan in no way replaces Ukraine’s peace formula but aims to strengthen Kyiv’s positions and compel Moscow to pursue a diplomatic resolution to the war.
The plan was shared with US President Joe Biden, as well as presidential candidates Kamala Harris and Donald Trump in September, along with allies such as the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Germany.
Zelenskyy will present it to European leaders on Thursday, October 17, 2024, during a summit in Brussels.
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