«People are more important than territory», Kim told The Independent, adding that for most people, victory means ending the war

Head of the Mykolaiv Regional State Administration Vitaliy Kim. Photo: NikVesti

Vitalii Kim, head of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration, said that for most Ukrainians, victory in the war with Russia today means, first and foremost, an end to hostilities, the preservation of human life, and guarantees of security.

He said this in an interview with the British publication The Independent.

When asked by a journalist about his personal priorities in US President Donald Trump's peace plan, Vitalii Kim said that the territorial issue is important, but the lives of Ukrainians are more important.

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«Territories are important, but people are more important, and the situation is such that we do not know what tomorrow will bring,» said Vitalii Kim.

He added that a global victory for him would be the restoration of Ukraine's 1991 borders, but acknowledged that society is exhausted by the war.

«For me personally, victory means our 1991 borders, where people are happy and not being killed, but everyone is very tired. So for the Ukrainian people, I think victory means simply stopping the war and obtaining certain security guarantees for the future so that our children can live the life we had before the invasion. I think that for most of our people, victory means returning life to what it was before the invasion. And this is very important for us because a lot of time has passed,» he added.

The journalist asked whether the head of the Mykolaiv Regional Military Administration believed in the widespread opinion about the complete collapse of the Russian economy. However, Vitalii Kim said that the Russian economy would be able to withstand sanctions for several more years, adding that Ukraine did not have that much time.

«The Russian economy is also suffering, and, in my opinion, they have a few years before they start to decline publicly. I think Russia knows this, but they still have time, and Ukraine does not. We are exhausted. And first and foremost, it's not about weapons or missiles — it's about people. We only have 40 million people, and they are all exhausted. Our soldiers cannot fight for four to ten years,» said Vitalii Kim.

We will remind you that Vitalii Kim said in one of his interviews that he believes the beginning of 2026 will be a turning point for ending the war in Ukraine. He shared that he expects many investors to arrive after that.

As is known, the next round of negotiations between Ukraine, Russia and the United States on ending the Russian war against Ukraine has been postponed to 4 and 5 February and will take place in Abu Dhabi. This was announced by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Last week, the parties held direct talks on the plan proposed by the United States and agreed to continue discussions on Sunday. According to sources in the negotiating circles, the parties have already agreed on several points but have not reached an agreement on the main issue. Russia demands the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from Donbas, while Kyiv rejects this demand.