In his message, Zelensky says the Russian invasion is coming to an end – News

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday that Russia’s invasion was “nearing its end”, but that his country would not reduce its “defense efforts” yet. Russia today announced that it will reduce hostilities in Kyiv and Chernihiv.

“Yes, we can consider the signals we hear from the trading platform as positive. But these signals do not dampen the devastation caused by Russian missiles,” Zelensky said in his usual late-night message posted on the Ukrainian presidential website.

“On its 34th day, the total invasion of Russia, and our total defense are over,” Zelensky said.

On Tuesday, the Russian army began withdrawing some of its forces from the outskirts of Kyiv and the besieged northern city of Chernihiv to focus on occupying Donbass, the main target of the current. Russian military campaign in Ukraine.

The General Command of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said in its latest military report that “the Russian enemy is carrying out the withdrawal of individual units from the territory of the Kyiv and Chernigov regions.”

But Zelensky stressed that “the observation should not be lost, the situation has not become easier. […] The Russian army still has great potential to continue attacks against our state. ”

Therefore, he warned that “we will not limit our defense efforts, whether in the north of our state or in all other regions of Ukraine. […] Defending Ukraine is task No. 1 at the moment.”

And about the ongoing negotiations with Russia, he said: “We see no reason to trust the words of some representatives of a country that is still striving for our destruction.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin admitted “progress” in negotiations with Ukraine today, in a phone conversation with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, but was adamant about his readiness to continue the offensive in eastern Ukraine, sources said.

For his part, Zelensky said that Ukraine will continue the negotiation process, stressing that there should be “real security” for his country and its sovereignty.

The Ukrainian president insisted, “Russian forces must leave the occupied territories. Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity must be guaranteed. Our sovereignty and territorial integrity cannot be compromised. There will not be.”

In addition, he urged the rest of the countries not to foresee the impact of the negotiations on sanctions against the Russian Federation.

He said that “the issue of sanctions cannot even be brought up until the war ends, so that we recover and restore justice,” stressing on the contrary that it should be intensified “weekly.”