KYIV — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reaffirmed on Friday that Ukraine’s position regarding its territories currently under Russian control remains "unchanged," asserting that only the Ukrainian people have the right to determine the country's borders.

“Our position is unchanged. Only the Ukrainian people have the right to decide which territories are Ukrainian,” Zelenskyy told journalists in Kyiv.

His remarks came in response to statements made by US President Donald Trump, who said in an interview with Time Magazine that Crimea — annexed by Moscow in 2014 — "will stay with Russia" under any agreement to end the ongoing Ukraine war.

Reiterating that Ukraine’s constitution defines all Russian-controlled territories as “temporarily occupied,” Zelenskyy stressed Kyiv’s refusal to recognize any loss of territory.

“It seems to me that this is an absolutely fair position. It is legal not only from the point of view of the Constitution of Ukraine, but also from the point of view of international law,” he said.

Zelenskyy emphasized that many countries — including those attempting to balance relations with both Moscow and Kyiv — continue to support Ukraine’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, including Crimea.

While he agreed with Trump’s assessment that Ukraine currently lacks sufficient military capacity to retake Crimea, Zelenskyy strongly disagreed with Trump's claim that Ukraine lacks a functioning army.

"But we have sanctions capabilities, the world has other possibilities of economic pressure, diplomatic pressure, to discuss territorial issues — but only after a complete and unconditional ceasefire. This is our vision," Zelenskyy noted.

He also touched on Ukraine’s NATO membership aspirations, saying that membership ultimately depends on the support of alliance member countries. He called for a pragmatic approach to providing Ukraine with necessary security guarantees.

“There are issues that were discussed in London regarding security guarantees from the US. We really want them to be strong ... We also expect a contingent from our European colleagues,” Zelenskyy said, referring to discussions held Thursday in London between representatives of the UK, France, Germany, the US, and a Ukrainian delegation.

He confirmed that Ukraine had presented its own vision for security guarantees, proposing a model equivalent to protections provided under Article 5 of the North Atlantic Treaty. — Agencies