Zelenskyy says he will continue pursuing peace despite atrocities committed by Russian forces

Despite the potential war crimes carried out by the Russian military on the people of Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that he would continue to push for peace.

The New York Post reported that Zelenskyy said, “No one wants to negotiate with a person or people who tortured this nation. It’s all understandable. And as a man, as a father, I understand this very well.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin has been intensely condemned for possible war crimes carried out by the Russian military that were uncovered as its forces withdrew from the areas around Ukraine’s capital city of Kyiv.

As they regained ground in the areas surrounding Kyiv, Ukrainian forces uncovered mass graves filled with civilians in the suburbs surrounding the city. They also found surface streets littered with the corpses of civilians.

Many of the slaughtered civilians bore marks of torture and execution. Civilian bodies were found with their hands tied behind their backs, and many had seemingly fatal gunshot wounds at the base of their skulls.

Russian forces have also bombed civilian gathering places such as train stations and medical facilities.

Zelenskyy said, “We don’t want to lose opportunities, if we have them, for a diplomatic solution.”

He added, “We have to fight, but fight for life. You can’t fight for dust when there is nothing and no people. That’s why it is important to stop this war.”

The Russian forces that withdrew from Kyiv are currently believed to be regathering in preparation for an attack on Donbas in Ukraine’s eastern region.

Zelenskyy said that Ukrainian forces currently fighting their Russian counterparts in the eastern regions of Ukraine are in “the heart of the war.”

He said, “It’s beating. We’re fighting. We’re strong. And if it stops beating, we will be in a weaker position.”

Zelenskyy is reportedly frustrated with the lack of military equipment being supplied to Ukraine by the U.S. and its allies in Western Europe. He indicated that he was grateful for what had been done for his country but suggested that much more needed to be done by the wealthy nations allied with Ukraine.

He said, “Of course, it’s not enough,” when asked whether the supplies his country had been given up to this point was enough to turn the tide of the war in Ukraine’s favor.

Despite Zelenskyy’s insistence that he is actively working to make peace with his Russian adversaries, when presented with the opportunity to make peace in mid-March he rejected the offer.

Israeli leadership, serving as diplomatic emissaries, conveyed to Zelenskyy that if Ukraine were to alter its constitution in a way that permanently committed the country from joining NATO, recognized Crimea as Russian territory, and recognized Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states, then Russia would end its invasion of Ukraine.