Sybiha: Putin has not achieved any strategic objectives in Ukraine

Speaking at Munich Security Conference, Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha calls for decisive steps ahead of expected Geneva talks

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said Russian President Vladimir Putin has failed to achieve any of his strategic objectives in the war and must accept that he will never accomplish his military goals in Ukraine.

Sybiha made the remarks during a panel titled “Security Guarantees for Ukraine” held within the framework of the 62nd Munich Security Conference.

Stating that the Russia-Ukraine war is ongoing, Sybiha said: “Putin has not achieved any of his strategic goals in Ukraine and must accept that he will never achieve any of his military objectives in Ukraine.”

“Time to Take Clear and Decisive Steps”

Sybiha recalled that the third round of trilateral talks between Russia, the United States and Ukraine aimed at ending the war is expected to take place on 17–18 February in Geneva, Switzerland.

He said they do not want to “listen to historical lessons” from Russia during the negotiations and expect concrete outcomes from the talks.

“It is time to take clear and decisive steps,” he said.

Sybiha noted that, within the 20-point peace plan proposed by the United States and currently under discussion, Ukraine has disagreements with Washington on only three points.

“Of course, there will be no peace agreement at the expense of our territorial integrity and sovereignty,” he added.

The foreign minister argued that ending the war would be impossible without the contribution of U.S. President Donald Trump.

“Under Trump’s personal leadership, there is an opportunity to accelerate our peace efforts,” he said.

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Sybiha also stated that Russia must be pressured into ending the war.

“We must exhaust Russia’s economy and Russia’s military capacity. Or better yet, we should exhaust both the economy and military capacity at the same time,” he said.

He added that a visa ban should be imposed across Europe on Russian citizens fighting against Ukraine.

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