Volodymyr Zelenskyy: Ukraine, War, Peace, Putin, Trump, NATO, and Freedom | Lex Fridman Podcast #456
Zelenskyy tells Lex Fridman that Putin must be pressured to stop the war — not persuaded — and that Ukraine received less than half of the $177B voted by the US.
- Zelenskyy says Ukraine received less than half of the $177B the US voted to provide, implying the gap represents corruption or lobbying on the American side.
- He argues Putin has no genuine will to end the war and must be coerced by Trump, not negotiated with as a willing partner.
- In December 2019, Zelenskyy and Putin personally agreed on a ceasefire in Paris; he says it failed partly because the US was absent from the talks.
- Zelenskyy claims Ukraine’s most influential oligarch since independence, Ihor Kolomoisky, is now in prison — something the US and EU could not accomplish despite criminal cases.
- He says Russia deliberately spread the narrative that Ukraine was selling weapons, calling it disinformation, and argues soldiers would eliminate anyone stealing front-line arms.
- Ukraine’s digitalization infrastructure (Diia app) kept banking and internet running even in surrounded cities during the 2022 invasion, and African Union nations have requested the same system.
- Zelenskyy believes Trump’s approval rating in Ukraine is currently the highest of any world leader, because Ukrainians trust he can pressure Putin to stop.
Guests: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine · 2025-01-05 · Watch on YouTube
