President Zelenskyy: Sanctions must remain until aggression and occupation end

“Sanctions are one of the few real tools the world has to pressure Russia into serious talks. What else is out there, apart from sanctions?” said Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Leaders’ Summit on Support for Ukraine on March 27.

Dear friends!

I’m glad to see you all and grateful for your support of Ukraine and Ukrainians. Emmanuel, thanks again for hosting us here in France – and more broadly, for your commitment to this working format. Keir, I also want to thank you personally for your dedication and for the important meetings you’ve led in the UK – your support really matters.

First – let’s talk about the situation right now.

As you all can see, the war is still going – and it’s only happening because of Russia. Their position is simple – keep the war going, keep attacking, and delay diplomacy. Right now, there are U.S. proposals on the table – including one for a full and unconditional ceasefire. We agreed to it. But of course, Russia rejected it and threw in a bunch of nonsense conditions nobody asked for.

Same with the idea of a ceasefire in the Black Sea – Russia is trying to push their own conditions onto our partners, but those conditions are unrealistic. Lifting sanctions on Russia right now would be a disaster for diplomacy.

Full text of the address: Office of the President of Ukraine