The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, is firmly counting on the defeat of Russia in the war against his country in the coming months. "Goliath has already started to lose. Goliath will definitely fall this year," Zelenskyy said in a video address to the participants of the Munich Security Conference (MSC), which opened on Friday, February 17. He compared Ukraine to the biblical David, who had to fight off the Russian Goliath.
Zelensky thanked Western countries for providing military aid to fight against Russian aggression: "There is no alternative to our victory, and there should be no alternative to our determination." At the same time, he believes that the supply of weapons is still not fast enough. Currently, Putin is trying to buy time for his aggression. It can still destroy many lives, so we need speed, Zelenskyy explained. Our lives depend on it, he emphasized.
"Is it time now for Ukraine to become a full-fledged part of the European Union? For most Europeans, this is no longer an issue. We have already received the status of a candidate country. We are already preparing to start membership negotiations," the president said. He reminded that Ukraine is already connected with Europe by economy, logistics and energy. "There is no alternative to Ukrainian victory. There is no alternative to Ukraine in the EU. There is no alternative to Ukraine in NATO. There is no alternative to our unity. Therefore, there is and will not be an alternative to getting rid of Russian aggression once and for all, liberating the land, liberating people." - said Zelensky.
He added that "we have to liberate Ukraine and Europe, because when Russian weapons shoot at us, they are already aimed at our neighbors."
"We must liberate every European institution and every sphere of the world economy from Russian aggression, because only then will there be a chance for freedom," the president emphasized. He urged not to believe propagandists, because now Russia is no longer as powerful a state as it was on February 24, 2022. "Now there are more of us, and we are definitely stronger. I am sure that Russia was much stronger then, but now it is not so powerful and they do not have such a large number of forces. I think this is our advantage. So, don't believe the propagandists, believe what's on the battlefield.", - said Zelensky.
The war in Ukraine is the main topic of the Munich conference
The meeting of politicians and experts in Munich will last until February 19. The focus of attention of the participants is the war between Russia and Ukraine, which has been going on for a year. According to the Minister of Defense of Germany Boris Pistorius (Boris Pistorius), the discussion of Russia's invasion of Ukraine will set the mood of the forum. The war is "not just a European conflict", it has consequences far beyond the borders of the continent, affecting grain supply, energy prices and inflation, the minister told journalists on the sidelines of the forum.
Chancellor of Germany Olaf Scholz in his speech at the opening of the conference in Munich, he confirmed Germany's intention to increase defense spending to two percent of GDP, but did not comment on proposals to exceed this mark. At the same time, the head of the German government called on allies to take a more active part in the supply of tanks to Ukraine, promising that Berlin would contribute to this decision by providing logistics and replenishment of supplies, as well as training Ukrainian soldiers. "For me, this is an example of what kind of leadership you can expect from Germany," Scholz said.
"Ukrainians defend their freedom with great sacrifices and absolutely amazing determination. And we will support them - as actively and for as long as it is necessary," the chancellor said.
Representatives of the Russian authorities were not invited to Munich
This year, more than 40 heads of state and government, about 90 ministers, as well as hundreds of politicians and experts from around the world are participating in the conference. The Russian government delegation will not be at the forum, just like in 2022 - then the forum was held a few days before the start of the invasion of Ukraine. Instead of officials of the Russian Federation, some Russian oppositionists and activists were invited to the forum, including Mikhail Khodorkovsky, Dmitry Gudkov, Garry Kasparov and Yulia Navalna.
Commenting on the decision not to invite Russia to the forum, the head of the Munich Security Conference Christoph Heusgen noted that it was not easy for the organizers. "You can invite representatives of Russia when there is hope - or at least the beginnings - that it is possible to get closer to the settlement of the conflict through negotiations. However, Vladimir Putin's statements do not give any room for movement (in this direction. — Ed.)" , - said the head of the MSC.
The Munich Security Conference was founded in 1962 as a "meeting of representatives of the defense departments" of NATO member countries. Since the end of the 90s, politicians and military personnel from the countries of Central and Eastern Europe have been participating in it. No decisions are made at the forum itself, but bilateral meetings traditionally take place on the fields.
