Zelenskyy: No one expected the Russians to go through Belarus and advance on the capital

“Everyone thought the Russians were bluffing”

Zelenskyy recalls that before the full-scale invasion, Russian troops were conducting exercises in Belarus. According to him, even amidst intelligence warnings, many partners did not believe that a real attack was being prepared. They perceived Putin's actions as saber-rattling — an attempt to scare Ukraine and force it into concessions.

European leaders called Putin, and he assured them that there would be no invasion.

Zelenskyy cites another circumstance that shows how Russian exercises in Belarus were perceived at the time:

“In addition, our Minister of Defense was invited there for these exercises, and he was there. Just so you understand. Imagine that.”

According to the President of Ukraine, the warnings he received from the American side were cautious diplomatic signals. He states that he was not informed about the invasion as a specific event with a concrete date and scale.

Zelenskyy himself also admits that he did not expect a full-scale invasion: it was hard for him to believe that partners knew about the preparation of such an attack but were not using all opportunities to prevent it.

Bartlett says that during the preparation for the interview, he was struck by the scale of the forces moving towards Kyiv.

Zelenskyy explained that the main Ukrainian grouping was located in the Donetsk and Luhansk regions: there it was containing the enemy's strongest forces.

“And our strongest grouping was located precisely here. And it was constant, they were here, they were located precisely here.

Why were they located here? Because they were containing the strongest Russian grouping so that it wouldn't break through. And no one expected them to pass through Belarus and advance on the capital. And that's why we had no strong troops here. This is an absolute fact.”

Could Trump have prevented the invasion

Bartlett reminds that Donald Trump has repeatedly said: if he had remained President of the United States, this war would not have started. And he asks if Zelenskyy believes this.

The President of Ukraine answers cautiously: no one knows for sure. He concedes that Trump's special relationship with Putin might have helped prevent the attack at that moment. But he reminds that Trump's presidency would have ended anyway, and Putin's goal — the occupation of Ukraine — would have remained. Therefore, in his opinion, the problem is broader than who exactly occupied the White House.

Realization came 20 days after the war began

Another question from Bartlett was about the Russian convoy, approximately 64 kilometers long, which satellites recorded on its way to Kyiv at the end of February.

The first call, according to the President of Ukraine, came from Joe Biden.

“We are ready to help you evacuate,” because, naturally, the invasion, Kyiv is surrounded, and “we are ready to help you, you and your family.” Similarly, many Europeans, several Europeans, and people from my entourage later offered me this. Let's say, people from my entourage, from our political circle, also offered to do all this.”

When asked what he replied to Biden, Zelenskyy repeated the famous phrase: “I need ammunition. Not a ride.”

Zelenskyy says that in the first days there was no full realization of the tragedy. According to him, at first he just worked: decisions had to be made faster than he could comprehend what was happening.

“I only understood all this 20 days after the start of the war. I just realized that something happened, something terrible, and when the pace started to change a bit, you began to understand: My God, this is war. And it is, undoubtedly, a terrible war. Yes, but at first I just worked.”

He explains this with his reaction to crises: when people around are in shock, the need to act forces him to gather himself.

“You see that they are in shock, and you understand that you need to act right now. Just act. Act every second. Draw conclusions. Kyiv is blocked. Open it. Tell the military, open the road. We need food, water, and so on. That’s what crisis management is.”

At the same time, Zelenskyy does not want to present such a reaction as exceptional bravery.

“When something like this happens, I see people around me falling apart. Well, because it’s a terrible war, I completely pull myself together. And only later, when you calm down, you realize that a terrible tragedy, a war, has happened, and it’s simply immense sorrow.”

Parade uniform and the miscalculation of no resistance

According to Zelenskyy, the Russian command was counting on the quick fall of Kyiv. He cites parade uniforms, which he says were found in damaged Russian equipment, as evidence.

“When our guys struck their tanks and such, we found parade uniforms. It’s true. They found parade uniforms in their various military vehicles. They were literally going for a parade. They specifically wanted to capture Kyiv in three days and symbolically hold another spectacle of pseudo-victory on Khreshchatyk, on Maidan Nezalezhnosti.”

For Zelenskyy, this is part of the same mistake by Putin — the refusal to recognize Ukraine as a separate country and Ukrainians as a separate people who would resist.

Therefore, he does not accept Trump's explanation that the Russian offensive failed due to the convoy making a wrong turn from the road into a muddy field.

“They reached Kyiv. They occupied cities on the way to Kyiv. Some they did not occupy; cities fought back, they bypassed them. I don't know what President Trump is talking about.”

The main obstacle, according to him, was resistance. It's not enough to pass through territory — occupied cities must also be held, leaving troops in each.

“I think 300-400 thousand to take Kyiv. They needed twice as many people. Why? Because to take Kyiv — what does it mean to take Kyiv? If you took these cities on the way to Kyiv, you need to leave troops to hold them. And for that, you need a huge number of people.”

According to Zelenskyy, the easy annexation of Crimea in 2014 gave Putin a mistaken idea of how the offensive on the rest of Ukraine would proceed.

“When he saw how easily Crimea was seized, he thought he could just as easily seize Kyiv. That was his experience.”

“This is a terrible pain I wouldn't wish on anyone”

Speaking about the personal burden of the war, Zelenskyy admits: “Honestly, I don’t sleep.”

According to him, at night he stays in touch with air defense military personnel.

Among the most difficult moments are meetings with the parents of fallen soldiers, to whom he presents awards for their children. He recalls a father who quietly asked him for a hug.

“This is immense, terrible pain that I wouldn’t wish on anyone,” he says.

“So many people had their hearts torn out, and there will be no new heart”

When asked how the war irreversibly changed him, Zelenskyy responds with a lengthy reflection. Returning to the old life is impossible, but he also considers it impossible to leave people without an answer to what they have experienced.

“This cannot be undone. These are simply two different worlds, a reevaluation of values. My only dream is to end this war. I desperately want justice. I just really want… I know that so many people had their hearts torn out, and there will be no new heart. We need to give them something, at least. Therefore, some kind of trial, some kind of justice, at least some moral consolation — this is absolutely necessary. You cannot just leave it, because this hole inside them will not heal.”

For him, punishing the guilty is also linked to whether violence can be stopped for a long time. Zelenskyy warns: if people who have lost everything do not see a path to justice, the desire for revenge will remain.

“And there will be revenge. And the revenge of so many people who have lost everything, which, naturally, carries the risk of some military or combat actions and so on. So, it's not that simple. It doesn't just end like that. Why do we talk about a just peace? Some people ask: what is a just peace? Well, there must be justice somehow. The guilty must be punished. At the very least, a path must be shown for how this will happen. Maybe not now, but it will happen.”

But there is also a desire to end all this: “It’s impossible to just forgive. And so, you understand that you want to be with your children, with your wife. Overall, you just want to end the war and get a little life back.”

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