- Prof. Zhaloba, how will everything end, how do you think the war will end…
- Look, the war is existential for both Russia and Ukraine. The war in Ukraine can only end with the capitulation of one of the two sides. If we now speak conditionally that by one means or another Ukraine is forced to sign some agreement to stop active military actions for a certain period, this will only be a pause before the decisive battle. This is also shown by the Minsk agreements, which were signed in 2014 and 2015 – Minsk 1 and Minsk 2. And then there were hostilities in the east. Then Zelensky came to power and decided to stop them. At one point he achieved that active hostilities in one or another region were stopped.
Did this stop us from Putin's attack - no. Did Putin give up his plans - no. Putin constantly says that this does not suit him, that something else does not suit him, that there is a Nazi regime in Kiev, that there are no people who consider themselves Ukrainians.
Putin has not given up on all this. When someone tells you that you have to give up your identity, your children, and if you don't, we will destroy you... The choice is not great, is it? Somehow this cannot be understood by other countries - what is the difference. The Hungarians say that we should not compare ourselves with them, that it is our own fault, that a war has started, that we are obliged to come to an agreement with the Russians, etc. What is the fundamental difference? The Russians entered Czechoslovakia in 1968 - the Prague Spring. Before that, in Hungary - in 1956, in Germany (ed. - GDR) - in 1953. Of course, if Bulgaria had declared itself against the USSR, there would have been intervention in your country as well. That is clear. What is the difference? The Russians do not question the existence of Germans, Czechs, Slovaks, Hungarians, Bulgarians, etc. It is good for these countries to be Russian satellites, but they remain independent states.
And the difference with Ukraine is that the Russians say that we should not exist.
The land is Russian, Kiev is a Russian city, and we have forgotten - Lenin told us this, the Austrian General Staff told us this, Bandera told us this, that we are Russians and we must become part of the Russian Federation, part of the Russian people and we must give up our own identity. And here is a key point that I want to make accessible to other peoples, so that they understand why now it is not just about sitting at the table with Putin and coming to an agreement. This is simply not realistic. Putin decided in 2014 to take Crimea, then he raised the issue of Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Then he included Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhia and Kherson regions in the Constitution. His 2014 plan says that he must take eight regions. He still wants Odessa, Dnepropetrovsk, Nikolaev, etc. Putin has not given up on this. Just as he did not give up on the ultimatum of December 2021, when Lavrov said that Russia wants the return of the borders with NATO from 1997. And then Poland, Romania and Bulgaria were not members of NATO. Russia is not giving up on this. And people do not understand the following. Poland, Romania and Bulgaria are in NATO, and Putin occupies Ukraine and that is the end of it all. No - it is not the end. The next step in Putin's plan is the return of the former post-socialist space, which was under the control of the USSR, the former Warsaw Pact, the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance, etc. Putin also claims that the greatest catastrophe of the 20th century was the collapse of the USSR and the zones it controlled.
- The US has a new president in the person of Donald Trump, who says he will force Putin to sit at the negotiating table…
- Look, I don't like to speculate. Honestly. When President Trump or the US Secretary of State presents Trump's plan and says they want to do this and that, then we can talk. Now it's all just speculation. Trump himself said so many different words that what can we say now. Only a few days ago, Trump addressed Putin with specific words that he is leading Russia to collapse and he must stop and end the war. This was a strong reaction. Then we heard from his spokesman Peskov that the Russians are ready to negotiate on equal terms, etc. But clear conditions have not been set out at the moment. What can I say about Trump, since he himself does not speak clearly. There is another point that remains key for me. I do not know what Trump will do, I would like him to understand the responsibility he bears as the leader of the Western world. And in this fight he must show all dictators that democratic countries are united, strong and determined to defend their democratic values and their freedom.
It is precisely this value - freedom, that is currently being defended in Ukraine.
And it is logical that Trump supports Ukraine. I don't know about Trump, but we - in Ukraine, are determined to defend our values and our freedom. Regardless of what Trump thinks, what Scholz thinks, what Orban thinks, etc., Ukrainians are obliged to do our "homework", regardless of who sets it for us. We ourselves know what we need. Ukraine shows that it is strong, as it did in 2022, 2023, 2024 and today - already 2025, because it will soon be three years since the start of the war, because we are holding the front.
We are fighting against the second army in the world. North Korean soldiers are not fighting for us.
We are alone. And here let's talk about the guilt of the West. When we could turn this situation around, when we had people, when we were not tired, if then the West had given us the support and weapons we needed, now we would be talking about completely different things. We are losing, you see, many motivated soldiers every day, because instead of the West supporting us resolutely, everyone was asking themselves when Ukraine would fall, when Kiev would fall, why should we interfere, etc.
- Was there no adequate assessment of the situation by the West?
- Now we live in a period of big politics. Big politics needs big politicians. And it turned out that mainly in the West we have small politicians who are placed in the conditions of big politics. They are not up to the level of the decisions they have to make. I can say that to date, a figure like Churchill is not seen in the Western world, unfortunately.
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Prof. Igor Zhaloba graduated from the Faculty of History of Chernivtsi State University. He defended his candidate's thesis in historical sciences at Uzhhorod State University (1991), doctoral thesis in historical sciences at Chernivtsi National University “Yuriy Fedkovich“ (2005).
He taught at Chernivtsi National University “Yuriy Fedkovich“, Kyiv International University, National Aviation University, Diplomatic Academy of Ukraine under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Kyiv University “Boris Grinchenko“ (1990-2021), visiting professor at the European Humanities University (2007-2014). Since 2021 he has been a senior research fellow at the Institute of History of Ukraine under the National Academy of Sciences. Prof. Zhaloba is a member of the board of the International Association for the Study of the History of Railways, vice-chairman of the Austrian-Ukrainian Commission of Historians, chairman of the Pan-European Union of Ukraine (PanEurope Ukraine), member of the Presidium of the International Pan-European Movement, vice-chairman of the Scientific Society for the History of Diplomacy and International Relations, member of the German-Ukrainian Society “For Our and Your Freedom”.
His scientific interests are in the field of the history of communications and trade routes, and the history of diplomacy. Prof. Zhaloba is a veteran of the war in Ukraine.