London, by Thanasis Gavou

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told the Sun newspaper that his country’s security intelligence services prevented him from “five or six” Russian plots to kill him. “I’ve lost count,” he added.

In an interview with the British newspaper in Kiev, he said that the first attempt caused panic, like the outbreak of Covid, but the next ones were now treated as a mild illness from the coronavirus.

He even revealed that he also knows the code name of the operation to overthrow or kill him, that is “Maidan 3”.

Asked if he would take an opportunity to have Ukrainian forces kill Putin, President Zelensky replied: “That’s the way war is and Ukraine has every right to defend its territory.”

Mr. Zelensky stressed that Ukraine’s will to defeat Russia remains strong. “From a moral point of view there is no quagmire,” he said characteristically, despite the fatigue from the constant airstrikes and bombardments.

He admitted that military progress on the ground has been limited this year and that this has discouraged some allies, who doubt whether Russian troops can be driven out. He noted that progress on the ground is being hampered by Russian air superiority.

But this stagnation is balanced by successes in the Black Sea, the Ukrainian leader argued, citing successful missile and drone strikes that forced the Russian fleet to retreat east.

In each case, ruled out for the time being the possibility of peace talks with Moscow.

“We do not believe that Putin, nor Russia, want to end the war. They want to kill us. We want justice too. Therefore, we are not talking about peace at any cost. We talk about a just peace because it is very important when we talk about fatigue to know where it comes from. Are they difficult on the battlefield? Yes. But should we become friends or go to the diplomatic table now with Russia? No,” he said.

The Ukrainian president he also ruled out the possibility of holding elections in his country which were scheduled for next year, saying it was illegal under current martial law and impossible during the war.