New Year’s greetings from the President of Ukraine: video
1 January 00:06
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has congratulated Ukrainians on the year 2026 in his annual traditional video address.
[Kommersant publishes the full text of the Ukrainian president’s greeting:
Dear Ukrainians, dear Ukrainians!
In a few minutes, the new year will come. And I would give everything, everything in the world, to be able to say in this address that peace will come in a few minutes. Unfortunately, I cannot do this yet, but with a clear conscience, I, and we all, can say that Ukraine is definitely doing everything for peace. And it continues to do so.
I got back to Kyiv yesterday at 6 am. Our team spent almost 50 hours on the road. The peace agreement is 90 percent ready. Ten percent remains. And this is much more than… than just numbers. This is the ten percent who actually have everything. It’s about ten percent that will determine the fate of the world, the fate of Ukraine and Europe, how people will live. Ten percent to save millions of lives. Ten percent of the determination that is needed to make peace work to the fullest. Ten percent of the much-needed unity and wisdom – Ukrainian, American, European, and worldwide. Ten percent for peace.
I want all of us to be on the same page now, to understand reality equally, to be armed, and not only on the battlefield, but to be armed with the truth. About who really wants what and why. What Ukraine wants. What America wants. What Russia wants. What Europe and the whole world wants.
Let’s start with the most important thing. What does Ukraine want? Peace? Yes. Or at any cost? No. We want the war to end, but not the end of Ukraine. Are we tired? Very much. Does this mean we are ready to give up? The person who thinks so is very wrong. And he obviously hasn’t realized who Ukrainians are over all these years. The people who have been holding out for 1407 days of full-scale war. Just realize these numbers. This is more than the Nazi occupation of many of our cities in World War II. 1407 days of unconquered Ukraine. Which in fact is in hiding every night, and fighting every day. Often without electricity. Often without sleep. And many days at the positions, many days. But always – without panic, without chaos, without discord, in unity, in order to be in peace. Do we want the war to end? Of course we do.
Why hasn’t it happened yet? The answer is in our neighborhood. Can Russia end the war? Yes, it can. Does it want to? No. Can the world force it to do so?
Yes, and this is the only way it will work. Why doesn’t the world do it to the fullest? Let’s figure it out. In order, honestly, the way it is… the way it is. Our people know it best.
Russia does not end its wars alone. There has never been a war in history that they ended on their own. Only pressure from others, only coercion from others, which they themselves call a “gesture of goodwill.”
This was the case in all the years when Russia was at war with someone, that is, in all the years of its existence.
This can be confirmed by everyone whom Moscow has waged war on at different times. Poland, Turkey, Finland, Syria, Georgia, Abkhazia, Ossetia, Chechnya – and this list can be continued endlessly, because almost the entire territory of Russia is made up of wars. This is who we are dealing with. We are Ukraine, Europe, America, the whole world.
“Get out of Donbas, and it will all end”. That’s how it sounds in Russian, like a deception. Translated into Ukrainian, English, German, French, and, in fact, any language of the world. Does anyone still believe them? Unfortunately, no. Because the truth is still too often avoided, called diplomacy, although it is just a lie in a suit.
And that is why there is pressure on Ukraine, yes. And that is why we are fighting like this. And we are proving the seemingly obvious truths that after the occupation of Crimea, the seizure of parts of Donetsk and Luhansk regions, the full-scale invasion on February 24, after Bucha, Mariupol, Olenivka and everything the Kremlin has been doing all this time, taking them at their word is simply a sentence. A verdict on common international security. And to every leader who simply has to protect his people.
Were these arguments heard? We hope so. Did they agree with us? Not completely. Not yet. And that is why we are still talking about 90 percent, not 100 percent, readiness of the peace agreement.
Intentions must become security guarantees. And therefore, they must be ratified. By the United States Congress, European parliaments, and all partners. A Budapest piece of paper will not satisfy Ukraine. Ukraine does not need the Minsk trap, which is so elaborately written. Signatures under weak agreements only fuel the war. My signature will be under a strong agreement. And this is what every meeting, every call, every decision is about now.
To ensure a strong peace for everyone. Not for a day, a week or two months – peace for years.
And only then is it really a success. Ukraine, America, Europe, in fact, every nation that wants to live, not fight.
I told President Trump about this. I told him during our first meeting, when everything could have ended in a storm for all of us, and during our recent meeting, which gives us all hope. That peace is close, it is… it is more possible than ever. And we are able to ensure it together.
And I’ll be honest: it was not easy to achieve such a change in the degree of relations between Ukraine and the United States. From the first Oval Office and all the “sharp corners” in it to the conversation in Mar-a-Lago, which showed the fact that nothing will work without Ukraine. Ukraine has defended its right to vote, and everyone sees that Ukraine respects itself, and therefore they respect us, they respect Ukraine. The most obvious proof of this is the seven meetings I had with the President of the United States this year. No matter where in the world we met: Washington, New York, The Hague, the Vatican – the President of the United States always mentions our people, talks about how bravely Ukrainians are fighting. And for the whole world, this mention of Ukrainians has become mandatory. And it’s a blessing to hear this, it’s a pride to be the President of such a nation.
And of such a state. A state that has withstood and is reaching any enemy military facility and oil refinery, bringing the war back to Russia, teaching NATO troops what modern drones are. A country that gives an asymmetrical slap in the face to Russia and forces Putin to lie that he took Kupyansk three times and shot down drones near his residence with his own hands. Ukraine, which has mature foresight, has its own long-range capabilities, and therefore has arguments. It has wisdom, dignity and is ready for compromise, but not for shame.
And I thank every leader who supports Ukraine in this. Who understands the most important thing: today there are only two options, and only two: either the world will stop Russia’s war, or Russia will drag the world into its war. And it’s a shock that after so many wars, after four years of this war, the war in Ukraine, in Europe, unfortunately, we have to explain this to many people. We keep explaining, we keep repeating. And even though the leaders are changing, the questions are the same.
Is America able to stop the aggressor very quickly and decisively? Absolutely.
Would we like to do so? Very much. And when is it possible? Always. And when do you need it? Yesterday we needed it. And in the 26th year it is possible. There are sanctions – we are grateful. Sanctions bite Russia, but only a dead grip will work. Russian oil is already cheaper, but their tankers must stop completely to stop the war. Russian factories are already slowing down, but they must stay standing to keep the occupier from moving. And “tomahawks” in Ukrainian hands would prove only one thing: there is no alternative to peace. And there must be peace. And there must be support. And there must be a strong agreement. And then everything will work.
Does Europe understand this? Yes, it does. Does the whole of Europe understand this? No. And I don’t want this understanding to come to everyone in Europe one day at four in the morning, just like it did in Ukraine. I don’t want this understanding to be brought to all Europeans by vehicles with the letter “Z” on their streets. And when Putin says: “We’re not going to attack you,” this is the first bell that tells us where his tanks will go and his drones will fly.
And we have every right to say that today: Ukraine is actually the only shield that now separates a comfortable European life from the “Russian world.” And most leaders do not ask themselves why they should support Ukraine, because if, God forbid, Ukraine falls, they will ask themselves why they should support Poland, who will fight for the Baltic states, and what to do without Ukraine in NATO?
Europe needs Ukraine and Ukraine needs Europe. We feel this as never before. And when we are on the phone with our partners after the meetings in the United States, and the Europeans are not sleeping, and everyone is very worried, and always in touch, and we are consulting with Emmanuel, the President of France, on how to proceed. And on the way to Kyiv, we talk to the German Chancellor and Friedrich says: “There will be air defense”. And we are talking with Kier Starmer that we need to meet immediately after the New Year, we need to make no pauses, so that there is a Coalition of the Willing to finalize all the documents, and not to lose America, and to press Russia. And how absolutely right George Maloney is when she says: look, the documents of the agreement must be correct, the peace must be such that Ukrainians accept it. Ukrainians must approve this peace. Because if everything is unfair, and the peace is fragile, and Moscow attacks again, she says, I don’t want disappointed people in Ukraine to burn portraits of European and American leaders in the squares.
These words, that there must be peace, that it must be decent, are supported by all those who are doing a lot for Ukraine: The Netherlands and Sweden, Norway and Poland. And the Prime Minister of Denmark, Mette, who always says: we are not doing enough for Ukraine, we must do more for Ukraine, because it is for the protection of the whole of Europe. And Spain, which is with us, and the Vatican, and the Phanar with their diplomacy and prayer. The Czech Republic, Romania, Greece, President Erdogan, all the countries of the European Union. And this morning I received a call from President Alex Stubb of Finland, and we speak with him every day. And after our important conversations, he always says to me at the end: “Friend, don’t forget to train, because you have to be strong, Ukrainians have to be strong. We believe in you. We all need you.”
And this kind of communication with European leaders, this warmth and spirit of this partnership means that Ukraine is already part of the European family and all the negotiation clusters between us have been open for a long time. And this unity gives us hope. And this unity of Ukraine and Europe has been proven. We have gained support in the amount of 100 billion dollars. This is much more than just aid for two years. This is the resilience of our army, this is peace for our people, this is money, salaries, pensions. Yes, this is life. And it is justice that in the end Russia pays for it.
And this unity and indifference to Ukraine goes far beyond the continent. We can see and feel it in Japan, in Australia, in Canada. I am very grateful to everyone in the world who is on the bright side of history, on the side of Ukraine, and who is doing everything to ensure that Ukraine can achieve its goals, to push for peace.
Dear people!
The New Year is coming in a moment. Millions of us are waiting for it. And we will have the New Year no matter what, because we are the kind of people we are, we are Ukrainians, we will come up with something, we will cook. And we will have a good time, we will have delicious food, we will have a glass of champagne. Maybe someone will have something stronger. And there will be a toast, very important words. A toast. One for everyone. For millions of Ukrainians.
To our soldiers who are now at ground zero. To everyone who gave their lives for the sake of Ukraine. To everyone who saves and teaches us every day. To all those who are always on duty, even on this night. Firefighters, doctors, power engineers. To our men who have returned from captivity and will celebrate this New Year at home. To all those we are waiting for. To all those who help us. To the end of this war. For peace to come. For the enemy to fail. And it won’t succeed as long as we fight like this, as long as we hold on like this. As long as we are Ukrainians.
Russia will have to end the war as soon as they find one more reason for peace than fighting. That is why we often say to each other what our guys at the front say: all we need is to hold out one day longer than they do.
And today we add: to be one step ahead, one hour faster, one decision bolder. And even if it is one tenth, it is better. And ten percent, the ten percent I mentioned at the beginning, ten percent stronger. And then we will win peace one hundred percent. I wish this to all of us.
Dear Ukrainians!
the year 2025 is coming to an end. A real winter is around us. And something we haven’t seen for a very long time is snow on New Year’s Eve. And all the children, of course, – to be honest, adults as well – were waiting for it.
And it gives a strong feeling: if we really, really want something, sooner or later it will happen. Of course, what we want most now is peace. But, unlike the New Year’s snow, it will not just fall from the sky like a miracle. But we believe in peace, and we are fighting for it,
and we are working for it. And we will continue to do so. Because in 2026, we really want to see peace in the sky and peace on earth, and warmth and light in our homes. And not just 170, but all 220 – as it should be. We want all our men to come home. From the front, from captivity, from occupation. So that we can be there. To have Ukraine.
Happy New Year, dear people!
Glory to Ukraine!
