Mr. President, thank you for being here. You said that you have hope that the US Congress will deliver more aid to Ukraine. With all due respect, why do you have that hope? Because there are some members who are very opposed to sending any more aid to Ukraine.

I'm sharing really with you what I hear or what I heard. It's not only about the trust. So you know that I'm really thankful for President and bipartisan support. But you have to know that usually once a month, it's not only with invitation works, but I meet a lot of congressmen from two parties, and they always said that they will help us. They will support us. They need some more time. They have some radical voices in Congress, but they will work on it. That's why what I have to do, I'm the President in a war time in Ukraine, in, which is where I have to trust our strategic partners. If they will change their mind, it's a great problem for us, and it will be a big challenge for us.

You were talking about the lawmakers from the US that you've met with. You met with Senator Chuck Schumer, the top Democrat in the Senate. But really, the person who may have your fate in his hands is Mike Johnson, the Republican House Speaker, who has never voted in favor aid to Ukraine. What would you say to him beyond that he should come visit?

I had a meeting with him, with Speaker Johnson, and he also... If we can trust each other, this is again the question of how to trust partners or not. That's it, what I have to say. So when we spoke each other, he said that he will do everything to to support Ukraine. He is on our side, and he understands how heroic our people, our soldiers, and civilians, and et cetera. He said that his faith with us, and prayers with us, and He said that he will do it. Then after my meeting with him, I had meeting in the White House, and also in the White House, the administration told me, Yes, we have challenges with some voices in Congress. I I asked President, really, I asked him that, Please, President, I'm asking you to help me and to help Ukrainian people. And please, can you do... I know that you have a lot of questions to each other because of the election period, challenging period, but can you put the pause in your dialog on these questions? Please, one meeting with each other, with Democrats and Republicans, your Republicans. And please, can you have a deal?

Because for us, it's very important. Yes, I gave this message. My message, I think that Johnson had it, and Biden also had it. So That's it. What can I do? I can't push Speaker. This is his decision, but I think he understands all the challenges. What do we have?

Do you trust Speaker Johnson?

I have to trust. I have to trust, but we'll see.

The stakes here. If USAID to Ukraine stops, does that increase Russia's chances of winning?

Yes, of course. Russians understand. They do everything by the information. It's part of the weapon, and Russian weapon. They're very strong on it. I was surprised that they are strong even in the United States, in EU, all over the world. It's true. They put a lot of money to this. The bill is very high, billions. Of course, they raise up this topic through their societies, different societies. Of Because they understand that it will have big influence on the battlefield, on the morality of Putin's murders, his soldiers, because he knows that their morality is very low, because Because during two years, they didn't have real victories on the battlefield. They just destroyed villages and some of our cities, but they couldn't occupy it, mostly. They couldn't occupy our big cities and our people. So that is the answer. So he needs not to give unity. He needs to break the unity between us and United States. It means to break the unity in United States.

You said that you believe Russia is preparing a counteroffensive for as soon as this may. If that happens and you don't get any more aid from the US, will you be prepared for that counteroffensive?

People will be prepared, but ammunition will not be prepared, and brigades will not be ready. Will not be ready not only for our counteroffensive. They will not be ready to defend, to stay strong. It will be very difficult.

One of the biggest things we hear from Republicans who don't support more aid to Ukraine is they're worried about corruption in Ukraine and corruption for the billions that are coming. Can you tell Americans why they should trust their taxpayer dollars with you?

First of all, thanks so much to America that they trust us. But if they have questions about it, they can get everything with details. Mostly, congressmen, they have it, and the administration also has it. Mostly, we didn't get billions with this military support. We've got more important things, military. Equipment, not just cash. Equipment, yes. Equipment, not a cash. That is very important. Then you have to know that all these billions, they didn't go to our budget. They went just to productions, defense productions, military productions of the United States, or to some funds. There are some funds in Europe. Sometimes it goes for buying some additional artillery and et cetera, and after that, we've got it. That is very important. The second, you have to know that now Ukraine has the candidate the status in EU. For us, it's very important. But to get the candidate status, it's not only the future, not only our will and target to be the members of EU. When you get it, you have to vote and to provide anticorruption reforms. All the anticorruption reforms, what EU law says. We voted and provided all these reforms. That's why we've got candidate status.

One other comment we heard from Senator J. D. Vance, who was in Munich at the security conference but didn't meet with you. He said that even if you got the $60 billion in aid, it is not going to fundamentally change the reality on the battlefield. What's your response to that?

I'm not showing that he understands what's going on here. We We don't need any rhetoric from people who are not deeply in the war. To understand it is to come to the front line to see what's going on, to speak with the people, then to go to civilians to understand what will be with them? And then what will be with them without this support? And he will understand that millions of people have been killed, will be killed.

So he doesn't understand it?

Because he doesn't understand it. Of course, the guy God bless, you don't have the war on your territory. And God bless, you will never feel it. But if such guys, and they are decision-makers for us, if such guys want to really make right decision, it's to understand right things, what's going on.

You've said that you're not in a stalemate. You don't believe Ukraine is stalemate. Realistically, what does victory look like for you?

We don't want any frozen conflicts. That is the first we had it by the Minsky Agreement. We had it after 2014 when they occupied our Kremlin and part of east of our country. We don't believe, all our society, we don't trust any frozen documents, any frozen conflicts, any just I know papers about this fire, and we understand that Putin will never keep his word. It means that what we need to push the army out of our territory, if we will control our borders, it means for us, of course, peace and the ending of the war. It's not enough. Really, it's not enough. The very important things. It's not to give Putin possibility to come back. In In any frozen conflict, he will come back to destroy us and to occupy us. That's true, and we don't want to check it the second time after Minsky agreement, after Normandy format. Everything was, all that documents failed. That means that with Putin, you can't trust him. That's why we don't need any frozen conflict.

You don't trust anything that his name is on. You did say today, as far as military plans, that your new commander-in-chief is drawing up a clear-cut plan, you said. Are there two different plans, one for if USAID happens and one if it doesn't happen?

Yes. It means that if we have ammunition or not, if we We have to count on our partners or we have to count only on us. So that is defending plan or defending with some steps forward with counteroffensive. That's very important. Those looking back previous year, The previous year. So what success we had on the Black Sea. Maybe not everybody saw it, but it was success. We destroyed their ships. We opened Black Sea, not totally, but anyway, we made and created the new route in the Black Sea, which gave for today about 30 million tons of green and other agricultural products. Yes, it's a big success, but we could do it with very contradec munitions, with very contradec things. I'm not shared with audience or you all the details, but some of them I think people understand.

You see the difference that USAID makes, is what you're saying? Yes.

It means that this year, if we will not get anything, we will not have any success.

We will not have any success?

Any new success. I think the route will be closed with a grain because to defend it, it's also about some ammunition, some air defense, and some other systems. That's why without it, and without, we can't count on this.

That's a really stark comment. You're basically saying that there will be no new success for Ukraine if there's no new USAID. Essentially, this all depends on USAID.

Steps success forward will depends on USAID. Germany. Yes. Not defending, not only defending life. Because if you defend, just defend, you give possibility Russia push you. Yes, small steps back, but anyway, we will have these steps back. Small one. But when you step back, you lose people. We will lose people.

You revealed today for the first time, the first time in years, how many Ukrainian soldiers have been killed in in the last two years. You said it's around 31,000. Why did you reveal that number today?

Because it's enough for us to hear liars from different sites that we lost 300,000 people, and Russia lost about 30, 50, 60 different people, different scientists. Even in the United States, different politicians, they shared some fantastic number of people have been killed. Russia didn't have success in occupation. They occupied it, and half of those started that they occupied it from the 2024. You know that half of this territory, we already deoccupied it. I think this is success. Again, Black Sea, this is success. It's a pity that we have so many losses because each Each person, this is tragedy for family, of course. But I wanted to stop all this sharing of flyers. I just wanted very much for our people, for our partners, understand.

It also, though, shows soldiers that you need. I mean, Russia, obviously, their manpower outnumbers you. Do you expect that there will be an increase in the mobilization for the draft?

When I was speaking about it before Chief Commander will do audit.

Okay, so you're not going to say if the number is going to go up yet. One other thing you mentioned, you said the US election you believe will be a key turning point. Donald Trump appears that he is on the verge of becoming the Republican nominee for President. The last time I interviewed him, he refused to say if he wanted Ukraine or Russia to win this war. Are you prepared for him to be reelected?

The decision who will be the President decision of your society. But one moment. I hope it will not be so, but this way. But anyway, if Donald Trump doesn't know whom he will support, Ukraine or Russia. I think that he will have challenges with his society because to support Russia, it means be against Americans, I'm sure. Because Russia, killing our people, killing their oppositions, they killed all the democracy and the democracy and freedom of speech. It means that he killed, Putin killed all the values which we defend today. I think, And I hope that we have common values, our people with your people. And that's why I can't understand how Donald Trump can be on the side of Putin. So for me, it's something unbelievable.

So would a Trump victory be good for Ukraine or bad for Ukraine?

I think more important, what is it for you? That's your decision. So for us, it's very dangerous if politics will change. Politics, the Ukraine. To Ukraine? Policy. Ukraine policy. Sorry. For us- If the Ukraine policy changes, it's dangerous. It's very dangerous.

You very clearly want Ukraine to be in NATO.

Yes.

One comment that Donald Trump made recently is that NATO countries that don't pay enough in defense, that Russia should do whatever the hell they want to those countries. Those are his words.

I'm I'm not sure that. I'm not sure that he's ready to do it. It's just worse. I think so.

You're not sure that he's ready to do- To go out from the NATO or to push countries.

You have to pay. Otherwise, Russia can do with you everything Russia wants. I think it's something like not just words.

It's just words. I think so. What about when he says that he could solve what's happening in one day, this two-year war now in one day?

I think he can't understand what's going on here. He can't solve it with Putin and with Russia because we'll never be ready to give our territory just for the stopping of the war, give them 30% of our country. I think he doesn't really understand that Putin will not stop. Even in this case, Putin will never stop, and he won't occupy us totally. That's why I think that Donald Trump doesn't know Putin. But I know that he met him, and I don't know the spirit and their dialog, if there are things... But he never fought with Putin. American Army never fought with the army of Russia. Never.

You have a better view than he does, a better understanding.

A better understanding.