MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th April, 2021) Ukraine thanks Western countries for their support for the country's territorial integrity, but would like more of it, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview with Financial Times, following Russia's Friday decision to return its troops, which took part in the training near the Russian-Ukrainian border, to their bases.
"My dad taught me to be grateful for any kind of help. If you ask me whether I want more [Western support], of course, I can frankly tell you I do," Zelenskyy said.
Ukraine's president added that the threat still exists, as Russia's army is "a very powerful force." According to him, the country, having strong armed forces, is ready for any surprises and well-prepared for responding to any kind of aggression.
Zelenskyy also said that the Minsk process on settling the conflict in Donbas should be more "flexible" and move with the times, serving "the purposes of today not of the past," mentioning that this format could be adjusted or even changed with another one.�
According to him, the 2014 conflict taught Ukraine a lesson that the country has "to learn to be strong."
The armed conflict in Donbas between Ukraine's government and the breakaway Donetsk and Luhansk republics has been ongoing since 2014. Western countries recently expressed their concern over the alleged intensification of Russia's actions on the Russian-Ukrainian border. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that Russian troops' movements along its own borders did not pose threat to any other country.
