Ukrainian President Looks to Israel as Model for Long-Term Conflict With Russia

“We must be ready for a long war while minimizing casualties, like Israel”

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned of the possibility of a protracted confrontation with Russia, citing Israel as a model of resilience and strategy to follow, as the resolution of this conflict, underway for 18 months, seems more and more distant. Speaking to journalist Natalia Mosiychuk in an interview posted on YouTube, Zelenskyy said Ukraine should learn to “live with” such a long-term conflict, just like Israel has. “We must be ready for a long war while minimizing casualties, like Israel did,” he said.

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“We can live like this,” Mr. Zelenskyy continued, while stressing that if the fighting moved to Russian territory, it would constitute a “significant risk” for his country, which could find itself “alone”.

The Ukrainian President also underlined the possibility that Ukraine could find itself isolated on the international scene. “We have to take into account that at a certain moment we could be left to our own devices. An ally could withdraw for internal or even political reasons”, explained the Ukrainian president. Finally, Volodymyr Zelenskyy indicated that he expects Ukraine to benefit from security guarantees similar to those provided by the United States to Israel. “We will probably receive exactly the Israeli model, which includes weapons, technology, training and funding.”