Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that the war-torn country’s chances of surviving Russia’s invasion would be significantly low without continued assistance from the US.
“Probably it will be very, very, very difficult. And of course, in all the difficult situations, you have a chance. But we will have low chance—low chance to survive without support of the United States,” Zelenskyy said in an interview with NBC’s Meet the Press, released on Friday.
His remarks came on the opening day of the Munich security conference, where European leaders sought clarity on the Trump administration’s stance on Ukraine. However, US vice president JD Vance largely avoided the issue in his speech, instead urging European nations to stop isolating far-right parties, according to The New York Times.
Meanwhile, US defense secretary Pete Hegseth indicated that Washington does not support Ukraine’s bid to join Nato as part of a peace deal. He also dismissed a return to Ukraine’s pre-2014 borders—before Russia annexed Crimea—as “unrealistic,” as per The New York Times.
Zelenskyy, who met with Vance, secretary of state Marco Rubio, and Trump’s envoy for Ukraine, general Keith Kellogg, pushed for “security guarantees.”
Vance reiterated the Trump administration’s desire for a negotiated settlement but did not provide details. “Fundamentally the goal is, as President Trump outlined it, we want the war to come to a close, we want the killing to stop. But we want to achieve a durable, lasting peace,” he said.
Additionally, Zelenskyy is willing to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin only after a common plan is negotiated with Trump, as per the news agency AP. The Ukrainian leader also confirmed that Trump had given him a direct phone number ahead of the Munich conference.
The conference discussions were overshadowed by an explosion at the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant, which Ukraine blamed on a Russian drone strike. The Kremlin denied involvement, while the International Atomic Energy Agency confirmed that radiation levels remained normal.
Trump’s approach to Ukraine has left European allies uncertain. He has suggested trading US aid for access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals and has downplayed the likelihood of Ukraine joining Nato. “I don’t see any way that a country in Russia’s position could allow … them to join Nato,” Trump told reporters.
