The Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelensky, explained this Tuesday at a press conference that the military establishment has asked him to mobilize an additional contingent of troops of between 450,000 and 500,000 men. The Ukrainian president noted, however, that no final decision has been made on this issue. “This is a very respectable number of troops...,” said Zelensky, who added that it was a proposal that only the country's Parliament could respond to.
The Ukrainian leader made these statements at the annual press conference held in the country's capital, which was broadcast by television cameras.
Ukraine is at a clear demographic disadvantage compared to Russia, a country that outnumbers the Ukrainian army's recruiting capabilities by a ratio of four to one. “I have told [the military] that I would need more arguments to support this movement,” the president added. A mobilization of this type would be highly unpopular in a disenchanted country. “First, it is a question of people. Second, it is a question of justice, of defensive capacity and it is also a question of finances.”
Zelensky quantified the amount necessary for a mobilization of this magnitude at $13.5 billion, considering that there are currently one million men employed in defense and security tasks in the country, according to statements made in the summer by Oleksii Reznikov, former Minister of Defense.
The arrival of winter, and the frustrated counteroffensive of spring and summer, have allowed divisions to emerge within the Ukrainian political-military leadership. A few days ago, the first military commander, Valeri Zaluzhni, declared to The Economist that the situation on the front was one of stagnation. Zelensky denied that this was true, and the military man was forced to rectify those statements.
In Ukrainian opposition circles, Zaluzhny is considered a possible political competitor to Zelensky. This Tuesday, the president stated that “I am working on relations” with the military.
At the press conference, the Ukrainian president also referred to the stalemate in financing from the US after the White House's failure to convince Republicans to agree to send more weapons to Kyiv. . "USA. “He will never betray us,” Zelensky declared. However, he admitted that a possible victory for Donald Trump in the next 2024 elections would have “a considerable impact” on relations with the leading world power.
The president also discussed relations with his neighbors. He stated that he was confident that the arrival of a new government in Warsaw can deactivate the blockade that the Polish transport sector maintains on the border with Ukraine, which has serious effects on an already deteriorating economy.
The military industry is, in fact, one of the few rising sectors in the context of the battered Ukrainian manufacturing. Zelensky stated, in this context, that the country will manufacture around one million drones in 2024.
He also noted that the time had come to talk to Viktor Orbán to “find solutions.” Right now, the Hungarian president is the big obstacle to European aid flowing to Kyiv.
Zelensky also declared that the outbreak of the conflict in Gaza has meant a “diplomatic success” for Vladimir Putin, to the extent that the conflict in the Middle East has partly eclipsed the prominence of the war in Ukraine. Russia “has had certain successes in the diplomatic field, and this is a fact because some countries have begun to think about who they should prioritize in their support, Ukraine or Israel,” he declared. “It definitely does not have a positive impact on Ukraine,” added the Ukrainian president, referring to the allies of Kyiv and Israel who have had to diversify their resources and attention when supporting two friendly countries at war.
Regarding possible peace talks, Zelensky was very cautious when stating that the next attempts will take place in Davos (in February, when the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum is held), without specifying what he was referring to.
