Putin Would Sacrifice Up to One Million Lives to Fully Occupy Donbas, Zelenskyy Says

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Russian President Vladimir Putin would have to sacrifice between 300,000 and 1 million lives to fully occupy the “Donbas”  region. Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine will not withdraw its troops from the region.

He made these remarks during an interview for the podcast The Rest Is Politics, according to his post on Telegram.

According to Zelenskyy, Putin is facing massive losses and struggling to find enough well-trained troops on the battlefield. The Ukrainian President suggested that Putin is seeking a way to present the situation as a victory and is therefore attempting to push Ukraine out of Donbas through diplomatic means, particularly through dialogue with the United States.

“For full occupation of Donbas, he would have to sacrifice between 300,000 and 1 million people, depending on how many years they would plan for this operation. This is an enormous price, even for Putin,” Zelenskyy said.

He further noted that Russian efforts to force Ukraine to withdraw from Donbas stem from their awareness that this would divide the Ukrainian nation. According to Zelenskyy, if Ukraine’s unity were to be undermined, Putin would likely launch a new blitzkrieg to quickly occupy the entire country.

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However, even if that scenario does not unfold, Putin would use the ensuing pause to recruit more troops, build up military-industrial capacity, and seek to lift international sanctions.

Zelenskyy added that the idea of a ceasefire in the form of a “stand where you stand” agreement aligns not only with Ukraine's desires but also with the interests of its international partners.

A day earlier, Volodymyr Zelenskyy highlighted the increasing security concerns in Ukraine, particularly focusing on Russia's ongoing efforts to create buffer zones along the country's borders.

Zelenskyy pointed out that these zones extend beyond Ukraine's Chernihiv and Sumy regions, reaching into Belarus as well.

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“The Russians aim to establish a buffer zone along the entire border, including not only their own territory but also Belarus's. This involves regions like Chernihiv and Sumy. There's nothing new about this,” Zelenskyy stated.

While he acknowledged that the current security risks in these areas are manageable, Zelenskyy emphasized the growing presence of Russian forces in other strategically important regions.

“Their main objective remains unchanged—the Pokrovsk sector. It is an important city for them; they have been trying to capture it for a long time. It is also important for us because that is where our line of defense and our defensive positions are,” Zelenskyy explained.

At the same time, Zelenskyy has criticized the United States for disregarding strong evidence that Russia is actively assisting Iran in targeting US military bases in the Middle East.

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