Anyone Seeking an End to This War Must Take the Necessary Steps to Halt Russia’s War Machine – Address by the President

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I wish you good health, fellow Ukrainians!

Today, I already had a meeting with Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council Rustem Umerov - following our Staff meeting, on the issue of drones, and following our agreements these weeks with partners.

It's been an active period with many decisions. We need to ensure everything actually works. Just this week alone, three sanction packages were adopted by the United Kingdom, Japan, and New Zealand. The European Union extended personal sanctions. It is crucial that pressure on Russia continues and intensifies across all jurisdictions. And one of the key targets for our actions is Russian trade in oil and other energy resources. The sanctions - and our proposed sanctions serve as the basis for partners' decisions - are aimed at the entire shadow fleet infrastructure: tanker captains, insurers, traders, and operators conducting business with Russia.

It is necessary, of course, to reduce the consumption of Russian oil, and this will definitely reduce Russia's ability to fight. Much is being done, and the most effective are our long-range steps and the precision of Ukrainian warriors. The fastest-acting sanctions are the strikes by our warriors.

I also thank all our partners who intentionally limit procurements of Russian energy resources. Over the years of this war - and this is solely Russia's war, Putin's war - over this time, Europe has progressed from near-total dependence on Russian energy resources, especially gas, to a more autonomous life with diverse suppliers.

We can hear the position of the US, and this position should be heard by all who still choose supplies from Russia rather than from other partners. Anyone seeking an end to this war must take the necessary steps to halt Russia's war machine. We are counting on strong steps from the United States, in cooperation with others - strong sanctions and tariff policies - which will serve as an argument for many around the world.

Everyone sees that Russia's war against Ukraine is Putin's war. Everyone sees that the Russian drones attacking Poland are also Putin's war. And this is a warning not only to Poland but to all of Europe. Russian drones can travel much greater distances. This is already a very long war - a war of Russia's ambitions, capabilities, and budget - and therefore a war of Russian oil, Russian gas, Russian uranium, and other Russian resources that fill Putin's coffers.

I urge all partners to stop looking for excuses not to impose particular sanctions - all partners: Europe, the United States, the G7, and the G20 states. Peace is a path - one that must be taken from war to peace. Everyone must tread this path, and sanctions are part of it. If Putin does not want peace, he must be forced into it. Putin's war will end when he - and only he - can no longer continue it. That is why strong sanctions against terminals shipping and receiving Russian oil are also necessary - and these could be among the greatest steps toward peace imaginable. A truly historic decision.

In Ukraine, we are doing everything possible on our side to reduce Russia's ability to fight. Our deep strikes will intensify - financing and tasks for this are already in place. Diplomats are also actively working with all partners to reduce their trade ties with Russia. And we are coordinating our actions.

This week, talks were held with the President of Finland, and the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, the Italian President of the Council of Ministers, the Prime Minister of Poland, and the NATO Secretary General. I also spoke with the foreign ministers of the United Kingdom, Denmark, and Poland. I had a productive meeting with Keith Kellogg. I also met with security advisors from Germany, the UK, France, and Italy. And today, by the way, advisors from these countries, along with Chief of the Office Andriy Yermak, are in the Kharkiv region. And it is important that partners visit not only Kyiv but also our other cities and other communities.

A basic document on security guarantees for Ukraine - and therefore for all of our Europe - is practically ready. Details are being carefully finalized, and everything will be agreed upon with all our partners. So now, we need to pressure Russia toward ending hostilities, toward a meeting format that will be effective, toward a reliable ceasefire, so that Russia stops killings and strikes. And this is achievable. It is achievable only if we act together - everyone in Europe, as the war is closest here, but also together with America. For Putin, it is the United States that represents a real argument - along with other global actors. We also must not forget about Russian assets: everything already identified, which are substantial funds, must be used to defend and restore Ukraine. This is legitimate.

I also want to thank Sweden today: there is a new defense package from Sweden this week, worth more than 900 million dollars. Thank you.

Good results have also been achieved at the Ramstein meeting - particularly regarding air defense. Reports were delivered by Minister of Defense Denys Shmyhal, who participated in Ramstein, and we now must step up efforts on the Patriots this fall.

We are doing everything to defend Ukraine, and we are doing everything to protect Ukrainians. I thank everyone standing with Ukraine! I thank everyone who is helping us!

Glory to Ukraine!