Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has delivered a blunt rejection of the idea that Vladimir Putin can be satisfied simply by gaining another piece of Ukrainian territory, arguing that the issue is far bigger than a few kilometers of land and warning that any settlement must address what Kyiv sees as Moscow’s broader objective in the war.

In an interview with CBC News, Zelenskyy said Ukraine could accept a ceasefire along the current line of contact if Russia agreed to stop fighting without conditions and the halt was followed by serious diplomacy involving international partners.

“We are ready for this,” Zelenskyy said, describing a ceasefire as a possible starting point for negotiations rather than necessarily the final settlement.

But Zelenskyy pushed back sharply against the idea of a so-called “win-win” peace, pointing to the enormous human cost of the war and arguing that the conflict had already moved beyond any scenario in which both sides could simply walk away claiming victory.

“There is no win-win in this war,” he said. “It stopped being win-win on the first day of this war.”

For Zelenskyy, the most important outcome would be an end to the fighting and the preservation of human life rather than a declaration of victory by either Russia or Ukraine. “The most important victory for everybody — it’s not for Ukraine and Russia, it’s for everybody, for the world — is peace, to stop this war,” he said. “And this is a victory for human lives.”

The Ukrainian president bluntly revealed that Putin might be satisfied with a specific territorial gain and rejected the suggestion that the war could ultimately be reduced to negotiations over “some kilometers” of Ukrainian land.

“The problem is that we have to change Putin’s mind,” Zelenskyy said.

He then offered his assessment of what he believes Moscow ultimately wants. “He needs Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said. “He needs Ukraine to be a part of Russia.”

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That is Zelenskyy’s characterization of Putin’s objective, rather than an independently established statement of Putin’s private intentions, but it explains why Kyiv has argued that a territorial concession alone would not necessarily produce a durable peace.

Zelenskyy also addressed the possibility of sitting across the negotiating table from Putin, saying he would be willing to meet his Russian counterpart if doing so could move the two countries closer to peace.

“But he is an enemy, of course,” Zelenskyy said, adding that meeting Putin was not something he personally wanted, saying he would rather spend that time with his family. Still, he said diplomacy could require speaking directly with an adversary if it could produce meaningful progress toward ending the war.

The Ukrainian president also argued that credible security guarantees would be essential because, in his assessment, Putin would not abandon his objective without sufficient pressure and safeguards.

“He will not change his goal,” Zelenskyy said. The comments come as the United States continues diplomatic contacts involving Ukraine and Russia, with Zelenskyy saying American envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff had traveled to Kyiv after meetings in Moscow. He said some proposals remained under discussion and that Kyiv had been asked not to publicly disclose certain details while negotiations continued.

The central message from Zelenskyy was therefore not that Ukraine is rejecting negotiations altogether, but that Kyiv does not view peace as simply drawing a new line across a map.

For Ukraine, the question is whether a ceasefire can become something more permanent.

And Zelenskyy’s warning is that any agreement must account for what Kyiv believes Russia ultimately seeks, because stopping the fighting temporarily and creating a lasting peace are not necessarily the same thing.