Zelesnkyy says Ukraine lacks 'strength' to regain territories as Nato discusses further support

It is looking more and more likely that Ukraine's President Zelenskyy has accepted his forces cannot win their war against Russia as ITV News' Martha Fairlie reports

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said Ukraine does "not have the strength to regain" the Donbas and Crimea territories which are now under Russian control.

It comes as Nato leaders are meeting with Zelenskyy in Brussels on Thursday to discuss what further support they can give Ukraine to put the country in the "strongest possible position" going into 2025.

In an interview with Le Parisien on Tuesday, Zelenskyy said: "We can only count on diplomatic pressure from the international community to force Putin to come to the negotiating table.

"I am surprised: why is the West, which supports us, taking such care with him? Why, from the beginning of the war, were we not massively armed?"

He added: "We need a strong America and Europe to put pressure on Putin and to stop this war."

Mark Rutte, Nato's secretary general, said the aim of the meeting is to discuss ways to put Ukraine in a position of strength for any future peace talks with Russia.

"High on the agenda is to make sure that the president, his team in Ukraine, are in the best possible position one day when they decide so to start the peace talks," Rutte said.

Foreign Secretary David Lammy, who is attending the Nato meeting, said: "It's hugely important that allies right across Europe step up in the support that they are giving Ukraine, the training that is still necessary for their armed forces, the finances that we need over the longer term."

However, when asked about if peace talks between Ukraine and Russia is a viable hope, Lammy said "Putin is not a man that you can negotiate with when he is causing such mayhem."

Alongside the UK, leaders from the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, the Netherlands and Poland were attending the meeting.

Zelenskyy said that the meeting would provide "a very good opportunity to speak about security guarantees for Ukraine, for today and for tomorrow”.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Keir Starmer "reiterated the need for allies to stand together with Ukraine" in a phone call with President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday, Downing Street said.

There have been concerns about whether the US will maintain its level of support for Ukraine when Trump re-enters the White House in January.

The incoming president has said that he wanted to end the conflict on “day one” of his term in office.

In a recent interview with Time magazine, Trump also said that he disagreed “very vehemently” with Ukraine firing US-made missiles into Russia, but insisted that he would not abandon Kyiv.

However, a statement released by Number 10 on Wednesday said that Starmer and Trump "agreed on their joint ambition to strengthen the close and historic relationship between the UK and the US".

“Turning to global conflicts, the Prime Minister reiterated the need for allies to stand together with Ukraine in the face of Russian aggression and to ensure Ukraine is in the strongest possible position," the statement added.

“On the Middle East, the Prime Minister underscored the need to work together to ensure peace and security in the region."

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