Since the 2022 Russian invasion
In the early hours of 24 February, shortly before the start of the Russian invasion, Zelenskyy recorded an address to the citizens of both Ukraine and Russia. He disputed claims of the Russian government about the presence of neo-Nazis in the Ukrainian government and stated that he had no intention of attacking the Donbas region while highlighting his connections to the area. In part of the address, he spoke in Russian to the people of Russia, appealing to them to pressure their leadership to prevent war:
Who will suffer the most from this? People. Who does not want this more than anyone? People. Who can prevent this? People.
Are these people present among you? I am sure there are. Public figures, journalists, musicians, actors, athletes, scientists, doctors, bloggers, stand-up comedians, Tik-Tokers and many more. Regular people. Regular, normal people. Men, women, the elderly, children, fathers, and most importantly, mothers. Just like people in Ukraine. Just like the authorities in Ukraine, no matter how much they try to convince you otherwise.
I know that they will not show this appeal of mine on Russian television. But the citizens of Russia must see it. They must know the truth. And the truth is that this needs to stop before it is too late. And if the Russian leadership does not want to sit down at the table with us for the sake of peace, then perhaps, they will sit down at the table with you.
Do Russians want war? I would very much like to answer this question. But the answer depends only on you, the citizens of the Russian Federation.
The speech was widely described as "emotional" and "astonishing."
On the morning of 24 February, Putin announced that Russia was initiating a "special military operation" in the Donbas. Russian missiles struck a number of military targets in Ukraine, and Zelenskyy declared martial law. Zelenskyy also announced that diplomatic relations with Russia were being severed, effective immediately. Later in the day, he announced general mobilisation. On 25 February, Zelenskyy said that despite Russia's claim that it was targeting only military sites, civilian sites were also being hit. In an early morning address that day, Zelenskyy said that his intelligence services had identified him as Russia's top target, but that he would remain in Kyiv and his family would stay in the country. "They want to destroy Ukraine politically by destroying the head of state," he said.
In the early hours of 26 February, during the most significant assault by Russian troops on the capital of Kyiv, the United States government and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan urged Zelenskyy to evacuate to a safer location, and both offered assistance for such an effort. Zelenskyy turned down both offers and opted to remain in Kyiv with its defence forces, saying that "the fight is here [in Kyiv]; I need ammunition, not a ride."
More than 90% of Ukrainians supported the actions of Zelenskyy, including more than 90% in western and central Ukraine and more than 80% in Russian-speaking regions in eastern and southern Ukraine. A Pew Research Center poll found that 72% of Americans had confidence in Zelenskyy's handling of international affairs.
Since the start of the invasion, Zelenskyy has reportedly been the target of more than a dozen assassination attempts; three were prevented by tips from Russian FSB employees who opposed the invasion. Two of those attempts were carried out by the Wagner Group, a Russian paramilitary force, and the third by the Kadyrovites, the personal guard of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov. While speaking about Ukrainian civilians who were killed by Russian forces, Zelenskyy said:
We will not forgive. We will not forget. We will punish everyone who committed atrocities in this war... We will find every scum who was shelling our cities, our people, who was shooting the missiles, who was giving orders. You will not have a quiet place on this earth – except for a grave.
Zelenskyy repeatedly called for direct talks with Putin, saying: "Good Lord, what do you want? Leave our land. If you don't want to leave now, sit down with me at the negotiating table. But not from 30 meters away, like with Macron and Scholz. I don't bite." Zelenskyy said he was "99.9% sure" that Putin thought the Ukrainians would welcome the invading forces with "flowers and smiles."
On 7 March 2022, as a condition for ending the invasion, the Kremlin demanded Ukraine's neutrality; recognition of Crimea, which had been annexed by Russia, as Russian territory; and recognition of the self-proclaimed separatist republics of Donetsk and Luhansk as independent states. On 8 March, Zelenskyy expressed willingness to discuss Putin's demands. Zelenskyy said he was ready for dialogue, but "not for capitulation." He proposed a new collective security agreement for Ukraine with the United States, Turkey, France, Germany as an alternative to the country joining NATO. Zelenskyy's Servant of the People party said that Ukraine would not give up its claims on Crimea, Donetsk and Luhansk. However, Zelenskyy said that Ukraine was considering giving the Russian language protected minority status.
On 15 March 2022, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, together with Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala and Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Janša, visited Kyiv to meet with Zelenskyy in a display of support for Ukraine. On 16 March 2022, a deepfake appeared online of Zelenskyy calling on Ukrainian citizens to surrender to Russia. The attack was largely deemed to have failed at its intended goal. The video is considered to be the first use of deepfake technology in a global-scale disinformation attack.
Zelenskyy has made an effort to rally the governments of Western nations to isolate Russia. He has made numerous addresses to the legislatures of the EU, UK, Poland, Australia, Canada, US, Germany, Israel, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Romania, and the Nordic countries.
On 23 March, Zelenskyy was calling on Russians to emigrate from Russia so as not to finance the war in Ukraine with their taxes. In March 2022, Zelenskyy supported the suspension of 11 Ukrainian political parties with ties to Russia: the Socialist Party of Ukraine, Derzhava, Left Opposition, Nashi, Opposition Bloc, Opposition Platform — For Life, Party of Shariy, Progressive Socialist Party of Ukraine, Union of Leftists, and the Volodymyr Saldo Bloc. The Communist Party of Ukraine, another pro-Russia party, had already been banned in 2015 because of its support to the Donbas separatists. Zelenskyy also supported consolidating all TV news stations into a single 24-hour news broadcast run by the Ukrainian state during martial law.
In May 2022, Zelenskyy said that Ukrainian men of conscription age had a duty to remain in Ukraine. As Zelenskyy ordered a general military mobilisation in February 2022, he also banned men aged 18 to 60 from leaving Ukraine.
On 25 May 2022, Zelenskyy denounced suggestions by former US diplomat Henry Kissinger that Ukraine should cede control of Crimea and Donbas to Russia in exchange for peace. He said that Ukraine would not agree to cease fire until Russia agreed to return Crimea and the Donbas region to Ukraine, and that "Ukraine will fight until it regains all its territories". However, he later said he did not believe that all the land seized by Russia since 2014 could be liberated by force, "If we decide to go that way, we will lose hundreds of thousands of people."
On 30 May 2022, Zelenskyy criticised EU leaders for being too soft on Russia and asked, "Why can Russia still earn almost a billion euros a day by selling energy?" The study published by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) calculates that the EU paid Russia about €56 billion for fossil fuel deliveries in the three months following the start of Russia's invasion.
On 20 June 2022, Zelenskyy addressed African Union (AU) representatives via videoconference. He invited African leaders to a virtual meeting, but only four of them attended. On 20 July 2022, South America's Mercosur trade bloc refused Zelenskyy's request to speak at the trade bloc's summit in Paraguay.
Speaking about the 2022 Russian mobilisation, Zelenskyy called on Russians to not submit to "criminal mobilisation", saying: "Russian commanders do not care about the lives of Russians – they just need to replenish the empty spaces left" by killed and wounded Russian soldiers.
Following Putin's announcement of Russia annexing four regions of Ukrainian territory it had seized during its invasion, Zelenskyy announced that Ukraine would not hold peace talks with Russia while Putin was president.
On 25 September 2022, Zelenskyy said that Putin's threats to use nuclear weapons "could be a reality." He added that Putin "wants to scare the whole world" with nuclear blackmail. He also said that Putin is aware that the "world will never forgive" a Russian nuclear strike. When asked what kind of relationship Ukrainians and Ukraine will have with Russia after the war, Zelenskyy replied that "They took too many people, too many lives. The society will not forgive them," adding that "It will be the choice of our society whether to talk to them, or not to talk at all, and for how many years, tens of years or more."
On 21 December 2022, Zelenskyy visited the United States on his first foreign trip since the war began. He met with President Joe Biden and addressed Congress delivering his full speech in English. The United States announced they would supply Patriot missiles to Ukraine as had been requested.
In early 2023, Zelenskyy signed a new law declaring that desertion, or "failure to report for duty without a valid reason," would result in up to 12 years in prison. Over a year later in late 2024, the Verkhovna Rada passed bills decriminalising soldiers' first instance of desertion or absence without leave if they returned to their duty station, and allowing these soldiers to return to military service.
In May 2023, he visited the International Criminal Court in The Hague and said he would like to see Putin stand trial for war crimes committed during the war in Ukraine, including the crime of aggression.
By 1 June the Battle of Bakhmut had been decided in Russia's favour.
On 19 September 2023, in a speech to the UN General Assembly, Zelenskyy called on neutral countries in Latin America, Africa and Asia to abandon their neutrality and support Ukraine. In October 2023, after the Hroza missile attack, he criticised countries supporting Russia, saying "all those who help Russia circumvent sanctions are criminals."
On 8 February 2024 Zelenskyy decommissioned General Valery Zaluzhny as Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and promoted General Oleksandr Syrskyi in his stead. On 17 February Syrskyi said Ukrainian forces were withdrawing from Avdiivka to avoid encirclement.
On 25 June 2024 Zelenskyy decommissioned Lt. Gen. Yuriy Sodol, who had been promoted in February to Syrskyi's now-vacant position. He installed Brig. Gen. Andriy Hnatov to replace Sodol.
In April 2024, Zelenskyy signed a new mobilisation law to increase the number of troops. He also signed into law a measure lowering Ukraine's army mobilisation age from 27 to 25.
In June 2024, Zelenskyy said that China's support for Russia would prolong the war in Ukraine. According to Zelenskyy, Russia used Chinese diplomats to undermine the Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland.
In July 2024, Zelenskyy criticised Narendra Modi's meeting with Putin on the same day that Russian missile strikes hit the children's hospital Okhmatdyt in Kyiv, saying "It is a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world's largest democracy hug the world's most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day."
On 30 August 2024, Zelenskyy decommissioned Lt Gen Mykola Oleshchuk, who had headed the Ukrainian Air Force since 2021, shortly after the death of F-16 pilot Col Oleksiy Mes during a Russian missile attack. Politician Maryana Bezuhla claimed the pilot's jet had been shot down by the friendly fire of an anti-aircraft missile, and the death is under investigation. Zelenskyy did not specify a reason for the dismissal, but said "we must...take care of all our warriors." Zelenskyy also said: "I have decided to replace the commander of the Air Forces... I am eternally grateful to all our military pilots," the next day after the pilot's death.
In October 2024, Zelenskyy unveiled the Victory Plan for Ukraine. The plan included five points: one geopolitical, two military, one economic, and one related to national defence and safety.
In December 2024, Zelenskyy resisted pressure from the Biden administration to lower the conscription age to 18 to replace Ukraine's battlefield losses. In February 2025, he said that Ukraine would introduce special military contracts for volunteers aged 18 to 24.
On 4 September 2024, most of the Shmyhal Government cabinet tendered their resignations while Zelenskyy considered his reshuffle.
In February 2025, Zelenskyy met with U.S. President Trump at the White House to discuss a proposed agreement which would give the United States the right to extract rare minerals from Ukrainian soil. The meeting soon turned into a heated exchange with Trump and Vice President JD Vance against Zelenskyy. The planned lunch, discussions, and signing were all cancelled and Zelenskyy was evicted from the White House.
In the aftermath of the meeting, the Trump administration suspended the provision of intelligence and military aid to Ukraine for around a week. The provision of aid to Ukraine was resumed after Zelenskyy agreed to an unconditional 30-day ceasefire, contingent on Russian approval (as Russia rejected the proposal, the ceasefire did not actually materialise).
In June 2025, after talks with Zelenskyy at The Hague NATO summit, Trump said he was considering sending more Patriot missile batteries to Ukraine to protect Kyiv from Russian attacks.
On 22 July 2025, despite calls to veto, Zelenskyy signed a controversial law that removed independence from two Ukrainian anti-corruption bodies, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau of Ukraine (NABU) and Specialised Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office (SAPO), and gave more power to the government's Prosecutor General, Zelenskyy loyalist Ruslan Kravchenko. Critics of the law have said it may hurt Ukraine's efforts to join the European Union, while EU officials have called the law a "step back".
After widespread protest across multiple cities, Zelenskyy submitted a new draft law aimed at restoring the independence of NABU and SAPO. He stated the new bill would protect the agencies from Russian influence while preserving their independence, though no details were given. According to NABU, the proposal restores both bodies' full powers and safeguards. The new bill was adopted by parliament and signed by Zelenskyy on 31 July 2025; Zelenskyy said it was "very important that the state listens to public opinion".
In October 2025, Zelenskyy welcomed US sanctions against Russia's largest oil companies Rosneft and Lukoil.
In an interview published on 25 September, Zelenskyy suggested he would not seek a second term after the war ends. On 15 December 2025, he said in an interview with ZDF that he would run if the next election was held during the war, but was unsure if he would run in peacetime.
In January 2026, Zelenskyy voiced strong support for the anti-government protests in Iran, describing them as an 'uprising' and calling on the international community to help the Iranian people achieve regime change. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Zelenskyy criticised the international community for "standing aside" while the protests were "drowned in blood".
In April 2026, Zelenskyy met with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz in Berlin to sign a $4.7 billion bilateral defence partnership agreement. The pact focused on drone co-production, missile deliveries, and battlefield data sharing. During the meeting, Zelenskyy also addressed personnel shortages in Ukraine, saying that the country faced an estimated 200,000 military desertions and two million draft-dodgers. He noted the need for military personnel rotations and called for the return of mobilisation-age men who had, according to Zelenskyy, left Ukraine illegally. Merz said that Germany would cooperate with Ukraine to restrict the asylum process for military-age Ukrainian men and facilitate their repatriation.
At the beginning of Russia's invasion, Zelenskyy said he was "ready for dialogue" but not "capitulation", and repeatedly called for direct talks with Putin. On 3 March 2022, he called for Putin to "sit down with me at the negotiating table. But not from 30 meters away, like with Macron and Scholz. I don't bite. What are you afraid of?". This was referring to the long table Putin uses for meetings.
During the early negotiations in March 2022, Zelenskyy said his priorities were to stop the invasion, protect Ukraine's sovereignty, and for Ukraine to be given "real" security guarantees to prevent further Russian aggression. In an interview with Russian journalists on 27 March 2022, Zelenskyy said he was willing to discuss Ukraine becoming a neutral country, in exchange for security guarantees, and that he was willing to negotiate the status of Russian-occupied Crimea and the Donbas. He said there could be no peace deal without a ceasefire and Russian troop withdrawal. Russia's media watchdog Roskomnadzor ordered Russian media not to publish the interview.
As the talks in Istanbul stalled, Zelenskyy tried to break the deadlock by proposing two separate treaties: an agreement on security guarantees "from those who are prepared to give such security guarantees", and another bilateral agreement between Ukraine and Russia. Several countries had shown willingness to become guarantors of Ukraine's security, but none had committed. Zelenskyy said "Moscow would like to have one treaty that would resolve all the issues. However, not everyone sees themselves at the table with Russia. ... people are saying, sorry, we have seen what happened in Bucha, circumstances change".
In November 2022, Zelenskyy proposed a 10-point peace plan. The key points were:
A ceasefire and withdrawal of Russian military forces from Ukraine
Release of prisoners and return of Ukrainian children deported to Russia
Protection and restoration of Ukraine's energy infrastructure
Prosecution of Russian war crimes
Security guarantees for Ukraine to prevent future aggression
Russia rejected Zelenskyy's peace plan and reiterated that it would not give up any territory it has taken by force.
Zelenskyy accepted a proposal for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire in March 2025, which was supported by the US and European allies. Russia repeatedly rejected the ceasefire proposal and set out numerous conditions for halting its war. On 1 June 2025, Zelenskyy said:We offered the Russians a ceasefire. Since March 11, the U.S. proposal for a full and unconditional ceasefire has been on the table. It was the Russians who chose to continue the war – even under conditions where the entire world is calling for an end to the killing. And pressure is truly needed – pressure on Russia that should bring it back to reality. Pressure through sanctions. Pressure from our forces. Pressure through diplomacy.
On 15 May 2025, Russian and Ukrainian delegations held direct talks in Istanbul, for the first time since early 2022. Zelenskyy arrived in Turkey several days before and said he was ready for face-to-face talks with Putin. Zelenskyy said "There is no point in prolonging the killings. And I will be waiting for Putin in Turkiye ... I hope that this time the Russians will not look for excuses". He also called for a ceasefire as a first step in negotiations. Putin rejected the call for a ceasefire and turned down Zelenskyy's invitation. The Russians would not compromise on their "maximalist" demands, and the talks failed.
The US and Russia were due to hold a peace summit in Budapest, Hungary, in October 2025. US president Trump suggested that he would meet Putin and Zelenskyy separately at the summit. Zelenskyy said he was willing to go to the summit and talk directly with Putin, asking "how can there be deals about us without us?". Trump cancelled the summit, due to the Russians' refusal to compromise on their maximalist demands.
Zelenskyy travelled to Turkey again in November 2025 in a bid to revive negotiations with Russia on ending the war. However, Russian representatives declined to attend.
In November 2025, US president Trump adopted a 28-point peace plan, interpreted as broadly pro-Russian, and according to The Insider, at its core a recycled Russian document substantially written by Kirill Dmitriev. In late December 2025, Zelenskyy, his representatives, along with European allies and the US then produced revised versions of the peace plan, but these were rejected by the Russians.
In May 2026, Russia demanded a 48-hour ceasefire so that it could mark Victory Day on 9 May. The Russian defence ministry threatened a "massive missile strike on the centre of Kyiv" if its truce demand was not met. In response, Zelenskyy announced an unlimited ceasefire from 6 May, saying Ukraine would observe the ceasefire for as long as Russia did. However, Russia continued attacking Ukraine. Zelenskyy said: They want Ukraine's permission to hold their parade – so they can safely take to the square for an hour once a year, and then go back to killing our people and waging war. The Russians are already talking about strikes after May 9. A strange and certainly twisted logic from the Russian leadership.
