President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy heard a report from Mykhailo Fedorov and expects that parliamentarians will support his candidacy for the position of Minister of Defense of Ukraine as early as next week.

He said this in his evening address.

“There was a report today by Mykhailo Fedorov essentially on our defense plan — strategic issues were discussed… We have an action plan for the defense sector, just as we do for diplomacy. And it depends solely on the determination of our partners which plan becomes the main one for the year. The war must be ended. To do this, pressure must be applied on Russia. Those who speak the language of ballistics and ‘Shaheds’ understand nothing except force. We are working to ensure the world acts effectively”, — the President emphasized.

The Head of State stressed that Russia alone is the source of this war, the reason for its prolongation, and deserves all retaliatory strikes and pressure for everything it does against life and people, against diplomacy, and against partners.

“We carefully monitor and record all attempts by Russians to undermine our relations with partners. We see which lobbyists Moscow engages, through whom it tries to act, what internal operations in Ukraine and Europe it attempts to launch. Our response will be tangible — through special services, intelligence agencies, political cooperation with partners, and, in particular, sanctions”, — Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

The President noted that movement has resumed in the U.S. Congress toward tougher sanctions against Russia — particularly against Russian oil.