Category Archives: Volodymyr Zelenskyy

Zelenskyy Admits He Is ‘Afraid Of Changes’ As Starmer Prepares To Stand Down

Posted on by
Reply

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has admitted he is “afraid of changes” as Keir Starmer prepares to step down as prime minister.

The outgoing PM has been a staunch supporter of Ukraine in its war against Russia throughout his two years in office.

He recalled how he proudly welcomed Zelenskyy to the UK in February 2025 after the Ukrainian leader was ambushed by the Trump administration and kicked out of the Oval Office.

Starmer has chosen to travel to the beleaguered country and remind Kyiv of the UK’s ongoing backing with just four days left in the job before Andy Burnham is given the keys to No.10.

Zelenskyy told the press during Starmer’s visit that he is “afraid of changes” with the UK PM set to step down and French president Emmanuel Macron expected to leave office next year.

He said: “Of course I’m afraid of changes, of course we are afraid because we are in the war each day.

“But again the priority is the relation between nations, not just between just people. I’m sure that these relations will not change, or we have to do our best not to lose such very good relations.”

“I hope we will never lose strong relations with the UK during or after the war.”

Starmer replied: “You won’t.”

Zelenskyy said he hopes to build “new strong relations” with the next prime minister and that he wants to have a meeting with Burnham “as soon as possible”.

Zelensky also awarded Starmer the Order of Freedom honour, which is Ukraine’s highest award for a foreign person.

Starmer shook Zelenskyy’s hand and said the award was “completely unexpected” and “very meaningful”, adding: “it really means a huge amount.”

A Downing Street spokesperson said the PM was “grateful and deeply humbled to receive the Order of Freedom for outstanding merit, the highest honour that can be given in Ukraine to anyone from another country”.

It is the second major honour the outgoing prime minister received this week for his work on the international stage.

He was unexpectedly awarded Légion d’honneur by French president Emmanuel Macron, becoming the first UK PM to ever receive the historic honour.

It was awarded in recognition of Starmer’s work in setting up the Coalition of the Willing, the group of countries chaired by France and the UK meant to help Ukraine.

On social media, Starmer wrote: “I’ve visited Ukraine four times as Prime Minister, and I’ve seen first-hand the devastation caused by Russia’s invasion. The UK’s support for Ukraine will never waver.

“That’s why we’re funding fighter jets for Ukraine, strengthening their ability to defend themselves while supporting thousands of skilled jobs in the UK. So good to see you again my friend, [Zelenskyy].”

Listen to Commons People, the podcast that makes politics easy. Every week, Kevin Schofield and Kate Nicholson unpack the week’s biggest stories to keep you informed. Join us for straightforward analysis of what’s going on at Westminster.

Share Button

‘F*** Away To Russia’: Ukrainian President Hits Out As Fresh Peace Talks Loom

Posted on by
Reply

Volodymyr Zelenskyy has fumed at the idea of handing more territory to Russia in an angry social media post and called for the west to expel all Russians.

More peace negotiations are set to take place in Geneva this week but Moscow continues to drag its feet and stick to its maximalist demands.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the “main issue” to be discussed between diplomats from Ukraine, Russia and the US will be the matter of territory.

Despite already holding a fifth of Ukraine’s sovereign land, Russia wants Ukraine to give up the entirety of its Donbas region in the east as part of a peace deal.

Kyiv has repeatedly rejected this call and refuses to withdraw its troops, even though the US is pushing for a peace deal sooner rather than later.

In a series of posts on X, the Ukrainian president Zelenskyy said it was a “big mistake” to ever reward the aggressor.

Pointing to Russia’s illegal annexation of Crimea in 2014, and Vladimir Putin’s occupation of parts of Georgia and Chechnya, Zelenskyy said: “Many mistakes were made.

“That’s why now I don’t want to be the President who will repeat the mistakes made by my predecessors or other people.”

The president said: “I’m not just talking about Ukraine. I’m speaking about the leaders of different countries that allowed an aggressive country like Russia to come onto their territory.

“Because you can’t stop Putin with your kisses or flowers.

“I never did it and that’s why I don’t feel that it’s the right way.”

Zelenskyy said that even giving into that demand from Putin would enable him to rebuild his military at a time when he “is losing 30–35 thousand people per month now”.

Instead, he called for stricter sanctions on Russia and the expulsion of Russians from the US and Europe.

<div class="js-react-hydrator" data-component-name="Twitter" data-component-id="6472" data-component-props="{"itemType":"rich","isLiveblogEmbed":false,"index":18,"contentIndexByType":1,"contentListType":"embed","code":"

This is a big mistake to allow the aggressor to take something. It was a big mistake at the very beginning, starting with 2014. And even before that, during the attack and occupation of parts of Georgia. And even before that, when Chechnya was occupied, with total destruction and…

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 16, 2026

","type":"rich","meta":{"author":"Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський","author_url":"https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa","cache_age":86400,"description":"This is a big mistake to allow the aggressor to take something. It was a big mistake at the very beginning, starting with 2014. And even before that, during the attack and occupation of parts of Georgia. And even before that, when Chechnya was occupied, with total destruction and…— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 16, 2026\n\n\n","options":{"_maxwidth":{"label":"Adjust width","placeholder":"220-550, in px","value":""},"_theme":{"value":"","values":{"dark":"Use dark theme"}}},"provider_name":"Twitter","title":"Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський on Twitter / X","type":"rich","url":"https://twitter.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/2023328276890947623","version":"1.0"},"flags":[],"enhancements":{},"fullBleed":false,"options":{"theme":"news","device":"desktop","editionInfo":{"id":"uk","name":"U.K.","link":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk","locale":"en_GB"},"originalEdition":"uk","isMapi":false,"isAmp":false,"isMobile":false,"isAdsFree":false,"isVideoEntry":false,"isEntry":true,"isMt":false,"entryId":"6993096ae4b0f2bf0ecf7893","entryPermalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/ukrainian-president-hits-out-as-fresh-peace-talks-loom_uk_6993096ae4b0f2bf0ecf7893","entryTagsList":"russia,ukraine,vladimir-putin,volodymyr-zelenskyy","sectionSlug":"politics","deptSlug":null,"sectionRedirectUrl":null,"subcategories":"","isWide":false,"isShopping":false,"headerOverride":null,"noVideoAds":false,"disableFloat":false,"isNative":false,"commercialVideo":{"provider":"custom","site_and_category":"uk.politics","package":null},"isHighline":false,"vidibleConfigValues":{"cid":"60afc140cf94592c45d7390c","disabledWithMapiEntries":false,"overrides":{"all":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4"},"whitelisted":["56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439","56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529","570278d2e4b070ff77b98217","57027b4be4b070ff77b98d5c","56fe95c4e4b0041c4242016b","570279cfe4b06d08e3629954","5ba9e8821c2e65639162ccf1","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e","5b35266b158f855373e28256","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2","60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","60b64354b171b7444beaff4d","60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","60d0de02b627221e9d819408"],"playlists":{"default":"57bc306888d2ff1a7f6b5579","news":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","politics":"56c6dbcee4b04edee8beb49c","entertainment":"56c6e7f2e4b0983aa64c60fc","tech":"56c6f70ae4b043c5bdcaebf9","parents":"56cc65c2e4b0239099455b42","lifestyle":"56cc66a9e4b01f81ef94e98c"},"playerUpdates":{"56c6056ee4b01f2b7e1b5f35":"60b8e525cdd90620331baaf4","56c5f12ee4b03a39c93c9439":"60d0d8e09340d7032ad0fb1a","59bfee7f9e451049f87f550b":"60d0d90f9340d7032ad0fbeb","5acccbaac269d609ef44c529":"60d0d9949340d7032ad0fed3","5bcd9904821576674bc55ced":"60d0d9f99340d7032ad10113","5d076ca127f25f504327c72e":"60d0daa69340d7032ad104cf","5ebac2e8abddfb04f877dff2":"60d0de02b627221e9d819408"}},"connatixConfigValues":{"defaultPlayer":"16b0ecc6-802c-4120-845f-e90629812c4d","clickToPlayPlayer":"823ac03a-0f7e-4bcb-8521-a5b091ae948d","videoPagePlayer":"05041ada-93f7-4e86-9208-e03a5b19311b","defaultPlaylist":"2e062669-71b4-41df-b17a-df6b1616bc8f"},"topConnatixThumnbailSrc":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAAEAAAABCAQAAAC1HAwCAAAAC0lEQVR42mNkYAAAAAYAAjCB0C8AAAAASUVORK5CYII=","customAmpComponents":[],"ampAssetsUrl":"https://amp.assets.huffpost.com","videoTraits":null,"positionInUnitCounts":{"buzz_head":{"count":0},"buzz_body":{"count":0},"buzz_bottom":{"count":0}},"positionInSubUnitCounts":{"article_body":{"count":4},"blog_summary":{"count":0},"before_you_go_content":{"count":0}},"connatixCountsHelper":{"count":0},"buzzfeedTracking":{"context_page_id":"6993096ae4b0f2bf0ecf7893","context_page_type":"buzz","destination":"huffpost","mode":"desktop","page_edition":"en-uk"},"tags":[{"name":"Russia","slug":"russia","links":{"relativeLink":"news/russia","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/russia","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/russia"},"relegenceId":3691301,"section":{"title":"Politics","slug":"politics"},"topic":{"title":"Ukraine","slug":"ukraine","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/ukraine/"},{"name":"Ukraine","slug":"ukraine","links":{"relativeLink":"news/ukraine","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/ukraine","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/ukraine"},"relegenceId":3696312,"section":{"title":"Politics","slug":"politics"},"topic":{"title":"Ukraine","slug":"ukraine","overridesSectionLabel":false},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/ukraine/"},{"name":"Vladimir Putin","slug":"vladimir-putin","links":{"relativeLink":"news/vladimir-putin","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/vladimir-putin","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/vladimir-putin"},"relegenceId":3697205,"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/vladimir-putin/"},{"name":"Volodymyr Zelenskyy","slug":"volodymyr-zelenskyy","links":{"relativeLink":"news/volodymyr-zelenskyy","permalink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/volodymyr-zelenskyy","mobileWebLink":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/volodymyr-zelenskyy"},"url":"https://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/news/volodymyr-zelenskyy/"}],"isLiveblogLive":null,"isLiveblog":false,"signInUrl":"https://login.huffpost.com/login?dest=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.huffpost.com%2Fentry%2Fukrainian-president-hits-out-as-fresh-peace-talks-loom_uk_6993096ae4b0f2bf0ecf7893%3Fhp_auth_done%3D1","cetUnit":"buzz_body","enableIncontentPlayer":true,"bodyAds":["

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-1\", \"entry_paragraph_1\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline\", \"entry_paragraph_2\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-2\", \"entry_paragraph_3\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n","

\r\n\r\n HPGam.cmd.push(function(){\r\n\t\treturn HPGam.render(\"inline-infinite\", \"repeating_dynamic_display\", false, false);\r\n });\r\n\r\n"],"adCount":0,"midArticleAdPartner":null},"isCollectionEmbed":false}”>

This is a big mistake to allow the aggressor to take something. It was a big mistake at the very beginning, starting with 2014. And even before that, during the attack and occupation of parts of Georgia. And even before that, when Chechnya was occupied, with total destruction and…

— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) February 16, 2026

Zelenskyy said: “Total sanctions means total. President Trump took strong steps sanctioning Lukoil and Rosneft. We are thankful to him. He can sanction all of their energy, in particular nuclear energy. And it will be a powerful message to the Europeans.

“Europeans have done a lot. But they haven’t yet sanctioned Russian nuclear energy, Rosatom, the persons and their relatives, their children, who live off their money in Europe, in the United States, who pay with these profits for their education at European universities, who own real estate in the United States. A lot of real estate. They financially support children and relatives everywhere.”

Speaking directly to the Russians who still live in the US and Europe, he said: “Fuck away to Russia. Go home. You don’t respect anybody in the United States. You don’t respect the rules. You don’t respect democracy. You don’t respect Ukraine or Europe. Go home.”

Meanwhile, US president Donald Trump insists that both Ukraine and Russia “want to make a deal” – though he continues to baselessly accuse Kyiv of holding up the talks.

Share Button