Russia will need two years and 800,000 casualties to seize eastern Ukraine, Zelensky says.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Russia would have to spend at least two years occupying eastern Ukraine, costing approximately 800,000 military casualties.

He said this in an interview with the French television channel France 2, quoted by Le Monde.

According to the head of state, the Kremlin is seeking to force Ukraine to withdraw from the entire Donbas, but since the start of the full-scale war, Russia has not achieved any strategic victory there. Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukrainians are well aware of the cost of the Russian army’s advance.

“Russians don’t count the lives lost. We see the price they pay for every meter and every kilometer of our land,” the president emphasized.

In his opinion, even if an attempt is made to fully occupy eastern Ukraine, the advance of Russian troops will be slow and the losses colossal. Zelenskyy is convinced that under such conditions, Russia will not be able to withstand a prolonged standoff.

The president also spoke about the possible freezing of the war. He noted that even maintaining Ukraine’s current position would already be a significant concession.

“Russia needs a break. If we’re talking about a demilitarized zone, then we must control our part,” Zelensky concluded, commenting on the prospects for the negotiations.

As a reminder, the Ukrainian delegation arrived in Abu Dhabi yesterday for further talks with Russia and the United States.

Negotiations between delegations in the United Arab Emirates may be more successful than previously predicted, it was reported.

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