Zelenskyy Says Ready To Carry Out Counterattacks Although Can Lose Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (Photo: President.gov.ua)

JAKARTA - President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday said the Ukrainian armed forces were now ready to start a counter-attack even though the attack was likely to be very detrimental to Ukraine.

"I don't know how long it will take (to start a retaliatory attack). Honestly, it could be in a different way, a very different way. But we will," he said in an interview with the Wall Street Journal quoted by Antara.

He added that the countermeasures were likely "very detrimental to Ukraine."

When asked if Ukraine hoped to become a NATO member, Zelenskyy said that Kiev had no sign of becoming a member of the alliance, so the country would not be represented at a NATO conference in the Lithuanian capital this July.

"If we don't get a signal at Vilnius, I'm sure there's no point in Ukraine being at that conference," he said.

The retaliatory attacks that Ukrainian forces may have carried out have been discussed in the media within months, with various estimated dates.

The Wagner group's chief paramilitary earlier said that retaliatory attacks had begun, taking into account drone and artillery strikes on Russia's border areas and even the Moscow capital, although Ukraine has denied responsibility for some of these attacks.