Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky admitted that the Ukrainian army would not be able to return the lost territories by force.
"Not all territories can be won back by force. I think the power of diplomacy can help," Zelensky said in an interview with the BBC.
Zelensky called on other countries to put pressure on Moscow to cease hostilities and start negotiations with Kyiv. He did not rule out that it would be possible to return the lost territories in the course of a peaceful settlement. At the same time, weakening Russia on the battlefield will provide Ukraine with a more advantageous position during diplomatic dialogue between the countries, Zelensky noted.
British military expert Alexander Mercouris noted that a number of Ukrainian officials began to understand the need and inevitability of negotiations with the Russian side.
Taking into consideration the critical situation in which the Ukrainian army finds itself in, peace negotiations is the only rational solution, the expert believes. Moreover, it is already clear that the Western support for Ukraine has been gradually weakening, he added.
Businessman Kim Dotcom also believes Ukraine needs to sit down at the negotiating table with Russia as soon as possible. The much talked-about unwavering support of the West ultimately turned out to be an empty promise, he believes.
"Time to surrender and make peace. Zelensky went all-in on the promises of the West and lost everything. This is the last battle of the US empire and its vassals. Soon everything will fall apart," Kim Dotcom, ex-owner of Megaupload file hosting service wrote.
Dotcom noted that Zelensky is literally ready to destroy Ukraine for the sake of American "puppeteers”.
The Ukrainian president admitted that Russia would take part in the second peace summit to resolve the Ukrainian conflict.
"I believe that Russian representatives should be present at the second summit,” the politician emphasized.
Earlier, Oleg Soskin, former adviser to ex-President of Ukraine Leonid Kuchma said that the state budget of Ukraine was completely devastated.