KIEV, Ukraine – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told NBC News on Tuesday that Kyiv plans to hold on indefinitely to Russian territories it seized in a surprise incursion last month in an effort to force President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table.
“We don’t need their country. We don’t want to bring our Ukrainian way of life there,” he said in his first one-on-one interview since Ukraine’s risky invasion of Russia.
Ukraine will “hold” the area as it is an essential part of its “victory plan” to end the war, Zelensky said, adding that he would present the proposal to international partners such as the United States.
“Right now we need it,” he said of the territory that Ukraine currently holds in Russia.
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Zelensky said he could not comment on whether Ukraine planned to try to seize more Russian territory.
“I won’t say, I’m sorry, I can’t talk about it. It’s like the beginning of our, this Kursk operation,” he said. “With all due respect, I can’t talk about it, I think the success is bordering on a surprise.”
Almost a month ago, Ukrainian troops entered Russia’s border region of Kursk in a secret operation, challenging the status quo of the two-and-a-half-year-old conflict. Kyiv now claims it controls nearly 1,000 square kilometers of Russian territory and has taken hundreds of Russian prisoners of war.
The Kursk operation, which was initially kept secret, came as a surprise to Ukraine’s allies, including the United States.
Zelensky told NBC News that the Biden administration was unaware of the operation and that it was kept top secret even in Ukraine.
Washington has repeatedly stated that it has no involvement in Kyiv’s plans for Kursk.
“Yes, we did not inform anyone. And it is not a question of lack of trust,” Zelensky said, adding that Kyiv’s counteroffensive last summer failed in many ways because it was announced and discussed so much that the Russians were given time to prepare.
This is a developing story, please check back later for updates.
Richard Engel and Gabe Joselow reported from Kyiv and Yuliya Talmazan from London.
