Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has expressed his support for U.S. President Donald Trump’s efforts to intensify sanctions pressure on Russia in order to compel the Russian side to end the war.
"We had [at the G7 summit in France] good meetings and talks with all the leaders, including President Trump. The President of the United States is very clear about increasing pressure on Russia to end this horrific war that Russia has waged against Ukraine and all of Europe. And this is also the shared position of all G7 leaders," Zelenskyy said at the opening of the Ramstein-format Contact Group meeting on Thursday.
"We are grateful for this unity. We have the tools, and they are strong enough to put Russia on a path where diplomacy becomes the only option," he added.
The president called the Russian strike on Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra in Kyiv a crime against humanity and stated that Ukraine is preparing responses to Russian attacks. "And today you can see one such response in the Moscow region this morning [presumably referring to a second strike on the Moscow oil refinery early Thursday morning]. "That is why our long-range sanctions are striking Russian oil facilities and refineries very effectively," Zelenskyy said.
He said Russia is already facing a fuel shortage and a significant drop in budget revenues. "But Putin isn’t stopping this war. He insists on continuing it. That’s why the pressure must increase. Every project supporting Ukrainian drones and our weapons production in Ukraine-and, of course, together with you, our partners-and every sanction against Russia for this war must all be stepped up," the president said.
"Right now, Russia is paying for the continuation of this war with losses of at least 30,000 soldiers every month on the front lines-killed or seriously wounded. And this number will grow as we improve our capabilities and stop Russian attacks," Zelenskyy added.
