The Russian War Machine Will Only Stop When It Runs Out of Fuel – Speech by the President at the Annual Yalta European Strategy Meeting

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Glory to Ukraine!

Dear attendees, all friends of our state and of the Ukrainian people!

I am glad to see you all here in Kyiv. We are very grateful to all of you for your support. And a special thanks to you, Alex, for these two days. Thank you very much for such strong support. I would also like to express special gratitude to General Kellogg. We truly did not know this before, but it turns out the United States has air defense no worse than Patriots. Indeed, General, this is what people say every time you are here. When you are in Kyiv, Keith Kellogg, the people of Kyiv can finally get some sleep. We would love for you to travel around all the cities of Ukraine. We truly would like to have a few more of such American systems for our country.

And this, in fact, is not really a joke. Honestly.

When the representative of the President of the United States, President Trump, is in Kyiv, there are no massive strikes. The killers hold back from killing.

With representatives of other states, this does not work. Perhaps it would work with a representative of China, but it seems China is not interested in stopping - even if not the whole war - at least the strikes.

Nor does it work, unfortunately, with representatives of international organizations, including the largest ones. When UN Secretary-General Guterres was in Kyiv, Putin carried out strikes - and quite demonstratively - the Russians were hitting not only with drones, the Russians were hitting with missiles. The same happened when the OSCE, NATO, IMF missions, or others were here.

So, I think the United States does have the power to influence Putin in such a way that he at least adjusts his behavior. And a very interesting question is - how does this work?

I remember when a representative of China was heading to Russia, they actually delivered us a note, sending all the signals from Beijing - so that we don't use long-range weapons while China's representative was in Russia. I wonder, does it work the same way with America and Russia, General?

Perhaps this is the way to implement the ceasefire that President Trump spoke about back in February. I am ready to grant General Kellogg citizenship - we could give him an apartment, anything at all - if it encourages Russia to cease fire.

Probably China also has such an opportunity - to make the Russians stop killing. But the world has not seen any willingness from China to make this happen with regard to Russia.

China has called for a ceasefire in this war and for this war not to be expanded, but Putin has done nothing. And that does not prevent China from hosting Putin with open arms and talking with him about what matters most - longevity.

Perhaps Putin has a certain respect for India. His words seem to suggest so.

But Russia has also ignored India's calls to end the war and its statements that our century is no time for war.

And this applies to everyone else in the world.

Whoever it may be, the Russians do not stop killing because of their presence or attention.

But how long can America's attention - and President Trump's attention - to this war and the need to end it be sustained?

How long will America support our defense against Russian strikes?

Will the world turn a blind eye to the fact that Putin wants to keep on fighting? And he does want to.

I have no doubt that Putin has sought answers to these and other similar questions. And the fact that he has chosen to continue the war speaks clearly as to what his answer is.

Putin does not believe in Europe, in America, or in the West as a whole. That is precisely why Russia is waging war.

Putin believes in China, in Iran, in North Korea. And that is why he seeks strategic agreements there.

Putin is betting that money will corrupt everyone - the weak and the strong alike, by the way. He believes money will allow him to buy forgiveness - for everything. Basically, that is his plan: to try to buy forgiveness. And to continue the war.

The main question is - who is the buyer?

Dear friends,

In fact, every day confronts all of us with such questions - different ones. Sometimes unpleasant, uncomfortable, questions to which, it seems, many in the world are not really going to give a true answer.

And it is precisely from such questions about the details that, in my view, the main question of today is formed - how to end the war.

Nineteen Russian drones against Poland from the territory of two states - Ukraine and Belarus - during Russian military exercises in Belarus. A deliberate strike. NATO countries raise combat aircraft. A few days have passed - and this is gradually ceasing to be a topic. And what are the consequences for Russia? Let's be honest - none.

A day before the attack on Poland, the Russians killed 25 people in Yarova, Donetsk region - ordinary people, elderly people, who had come for their pensions. These are the very residents of Donbas whom Russia claims to be saving. It is killing them. This is the very land that Russia wants to take away in order to supposedly "save" - save it from life. Exactly so. Russia leaves nothing in Donbas except graves and ruins. Of course, we are striking back. The question is: what are the others doing?

And just a little more than a week before Yarova, the Russian flag was flying at the film festival in Venice. On August 28, the Russians launched a brutal attack on Kyiv - children were killed, as you remember, more than 20 people in total were killed here in Kyiv alone. But… This did not prevent the Russian flag from appearing at one of the world's leading arts events. Because art is supposedly beyond politics, beyond war. Art is for the living at festivals, not for the dead in Ukrainian cities and villages after yet another Russian strike. How can Russians be rewarded for war by being welcomed back into the world as if nothing had happened?

Strong responses are needed. Strong responses.

Putin's goal is the occupation of all of Ukraine. And whatever he may say to anyone, it is clear - he has revved up his war machine to such an extent that he simply cannot stop it unless he is forced to fundamentally change his objectives.

Some may think that swapping territories or trying to tempt Putin with the resumption of trade with America or the world could stop this war. That is not the case.

The Russian war machine will only stop when it runs out of fuel.

And Putin will begin to stop it himself when he himself truly feels that the resources for war are running out.

That is why it is so essential to have strong responses to every question, to every challenge. Russia must come to believe that America, Europe, and the West as a whole will not allow Russia to wage war.

Persuading Russia alone, dialogue alone, will not achieve this.

What is needed is truly strong pressure - so that instead of aiming to occupy Ukraine or any other country, Putin's goal becomes preserving his economy, his system, preserving what he has lived for all these years.

We cannot replace this head, but we can replace the main objective.

We also offer our partners a way to force Russia to stop its attacks - to stop its aerial terror.

If together with our partners we can truly secure our airspace - protecting Ukraine first and foremost from strikes, and our neighbors, such as Poland and Romania, from any Russian threats in the sky - Putin will lose the very meaning of his war.

Russia will not achieve its goals through ground assaults alone, and at sea they have already lost the ability to operate.

It is the United States of America that has and can provide such air defense systems, such quality and, above all, such quantity of combat aircraft, so that within a multi-component system of defense - above all, of the sky - we, together with our partners in Europe, can stop Russia's terror.

And this will surely force Russia to end the war.

All the more so, Putin himself is hinting by his actions that this is what should be done.

This should be the truly strong conclusion after Russian drones over Poland. Russia always tries to exploit some kind of deficit - and in particular, a deficit of security. It would be right to fill this deficit with truly effective security cooperation between Americans and Europeans.

It is precisely for this purpose that we are building a new system of security guarantees - based on our strong army. Thank you, warriors. A strong Ukrainian army - as part of Europe's security forces.

When we speak about security guarantees for us in Ukraine, in fact, these are security guarantees for everyone in Europe. This is an obvious thing already. By now, even a commonplace. But it must be said again and again, so that this system is filled with real substance. And I am grateful to all partners who are helping us.

We must find a way to influence China so that it uses its leverage on Russia for the sake of ending the war. Russia will, in any case, remain a supplier of raw materials for China and politically dependent on China - that is the path they have chosen, and they have already gone too far down it. But we must find an answer to how to motivate China to take the path without war. And this, too, depends largely on the strength of America and Europe, on the strength of the G7.

And one of the key issues is the isolation of Russia. This must absolutely be preserved. Sanctions work in part toward this. Tariffs must also work toward this. Russian assets must be confiscated for this purpose as well. It is important that principles prevail - in political matters, in cultural matters, in sports, in all things. Russia's bet on money - on Putin's belief that he can buy everything and everyone - must not succeed.

Is this possible? Yes. If the world truly wants the war to end.

Giving Putin this or that piece of Ukrainian land so that he stops the war - that will not happen. And that is not a solution. It is a pause. Just like after 2008 and Georgia. Just like after 2014 with Crimea and Donetsk.

We need a guaranteed end to the war. We need guaranteed security for us, for Ukraine, for Ukrainian children. We need guaranteed accountability of Russia for what it has done against Ukraine, against Ukrainians, against our Ukrainian children.

I thank all those who are helping us to achieve this, who support our defense, who work together with us so that Ukraine and all of Europe are strong, and who help us in our relations with President Trump and with the United States as a whole. Only together can we achieve peace. And only if we respond strongly to every question this war poses. Strongly. So that the objectives change. Thank you.

Glory to Ukraine!

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