In September 2023, Dmytro Kulebawho served as Ukrainian Foreign Minister for four years, submitted his resignation. To this day, more than a year after his resignation, he has not spoken publicly about the reasons for his departure. However, it is presumed that his dismissal would be related to the increase in tensions within the president’s closest circle. Volodimir Zelensky.
The former minister, known for his relaxed attitude and sense of humor even in adverse contexts, challenged stereotypes about a backward Ukraine or one dominated by former post-Soviet apparatchiks. His ministry, despite being protected by sandbags and fortifications due to the ongoing conflict, conveyed his country’s resilience in a critical period.
Days ago, as part of a trip he made to London for a conference, he gave an interview to the British newspaper Financial Times. For it, Kuleba met with journalist Gideon Rachman, at the Northall restaurant. For those hours, Vladimir Putin’s troops had launched the first ballistic missile against Ukrainian territory.
Minutes after arriving at the restaurant, around 10 in the morning, the waitress, a young Ukrainian named Daria. Like millions of her compatriots, she was forced to leave the country when war broke out in February 2022. “Welcome to London, I hope you can return to Ukraine at some point,” Rachman told her. “I hope so. “My father is now in defense,” he responded. Then, the young woman had a brief dialogue with Kuleba in Ukrainian.
The journalist opted for a vegetarian breakfast, with eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes and a vegetarian sausage. The former Ukrainian minister, meanwhile, ordered Maltese eggs and a side of black pudding. They both ordered coffee to accompany the meal.
After placing the order, and the brief conversation with Daria, Rachman and Kuleba began to address the current situation of the war in Ukraine. The former foreign minister warned that a lack of adequate resources for Ukrainian forces could lead his country to lose the war against Russia. He also expressed concern about the situation on the front and criticized the West’s limitations in the supply of advanced weapons.
“Today do we have the means and tools to turn the tables? No, we don’t have them. And if it continues like this, we will lose the war.”he warned, bluntly.
Although he acknowledged that the current situation is critical, he recalled that Ukraine has already overcome even darker momentslike the first months of the Russian invasion in 2022: “It is true that things are looking bad on the battlefield. But things looked even worse in the first months of 2022. What I hate in my conversations with European and American experts – and ‘hate’ is a word I don’t usually use – is that everyone asks what Ukraine is willing to do, What Ukraine is willing to accept. And I say, ‘Guys, first find the answer to the question (of) what Putin is willing to accept. Because that’s where war comes from.”
The journalist of Financial Times asked him to answer his own question: What is Putin willing to accept? “Your objective is clear. He has to dismantle the Ukrainian state one way or another. “Their logic is, why should I take part of it if I can take it all in the end?” he responded.
Likewise, Kuleba highlighted the ambivalence of the West, pointing out the influence of the United States in the dynamics of the conflict. According to him, the administration of Joe Bidenalthough crucial in initial support for Ukraine, has been cautious about providing offensive weapons, fearing nuclear escalation. However, he recognized the Democratic president’s support for his country.
“Ukrainians are lucky that Joe Biden was the president of the United States in 2022, because if it had been someone else, things would have been much worse for us. Joe Biden has a place for Ukraine in his heart. But his mind was formed in the logic of the Cold War. With him there is no talk of Ukraine’s accession to NATO. Don’t talk to him about nuclear weapons. Because those are the things that provoke him,” he noted.
In contrast, he reflected on the impact of an eventual return of Donald Trump to the White House. Both Zelensky and Putin see an opportunity in Trumpassured Kuleba, since both would seek to manage their willingness to facilitate negotiations.
Regarding NATO’s role, he warned of the fragility of its collective defense structure if a future American president decided not to intervene. “If Trump says he will not defend every inch of NATO territory, the shield disappears, and Putin will feel free to do whatever he wants,” he warned.
“Imagine if Putin dared to attack. I love Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, they are very good friends, but (the Russians) would occupy a good part of their territory in 24 hours. So let’s imagine that in a few months time NATO forces heroically expel the Russian army from the Baltics. After months of intense fighting, these Baltic countries will look the same as Bakhmut and the entire Donbas look like today. They will disappear. They will be literally devastated. Is this the reality that the West is willing to accept?”he added.
Speaking about the “global south,” Kuleba explained that, although many countries understand the situation in Ukraine, they fear retaliation from Russia or the influence of China. Africa, in particular, faces pressure from both actors, making it difficult to explicitly support kyiv.
For its part, denied claims that Ukraine rejected peace deals in 2022 due to Western pressure. “If there had been even the slightest possibility of ending the war, our Western partners would have pushed us to accept it,” he said, calling the Russian proposals unacceptable, including terms such as the total neutralization of Ukraine and demilitarization under Russian control.
“They even had a provision according to which all Ukrainian heavy armor had to be deposited in warehouses and these warehouses had to remain under the control of the Russian forces. So the plan was clear. Neutralize Ukraine, stay where they are in Ukraine, demilitarize Ukraine. And then deliver the final blow.”he commented.
The former minister also reflected on the human and social cost of war, noting the devastating impact on younger generations, including his own family. However, he highlighted that the conflict has boosted Ukraine’s recognition on the global stage. “Without this war, it would have taken 100 years for the world to recognize us as part of the West,” he lamented.
Finally, he announced that the war will continue as long as Putin denies the existence of Ukraine as an independent state. “Anyone who believes otherwise is either naive or in the pay of Russia,” he concluded.
