National Guard of Ukraine commander and Brig. Gen. Oleksandr Pivnenko said true victory for Ukraine means fully restoring control over all occupied territories. He said that goal could take many years, and for now the country’s priority remains survival and holding the front line. Photo: Operational Command “South”
Speaking with BBC correspondent Jeremy Bowen, Pivnenko said Ukraine’s strategic objective is to reclaim all its land, even if it takes a long time. He emphasized that military victory doesn’t have to come quickly, but it remains the ultimate goal that justifies holding the defense.
The general also said Ukraine is not prepared to cede territory. While a ceasefire could be discussed, voluntary surrender of land is off the table. He added that Ukrainian troops would carry out an order from the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, but the public would not accept such a move given the losses and suffering the country has already endured.
“Because we are a country governed by the rule of law. But how would our people perceive this—and why did we start defending ourselves in the first place? We could have agreed back then to just hand over, for example, Luhansk and Donbas and, figuratively speaking, ended the war. We have lost so many of our people and so much territory to simply stop and simply give it away,” he said.
Addressing the fight against a numerically superior enemy, Pivnenko said economic pressure and support from European and US partners are key. A war can’t be won by body counts alone, he argued, but Ukraine’s actions are already hitting the Russian economy and complicating postwar recovery.
“The postwar period will be even harder for them, because they’ll have to explain to their people what this war was for and why there were so many losses. We know an entire region where there are basically no people of conscription age,” Pivnenko said.
He also responded to Donald Trump’s claim that Ukraine faces inevitable defeat without a rapid ceasefire, saying the country can continue to fight for years.
“Not exactly. We can keep fighting for several years, 100%. But I believe that, overall, wars should end—on this planet, and killing people for territory and resources is something we simply don’t understand. It has to stop,” Pivnenko said.
He stressed that Ukrainians are tired of the war, but the key is to understand its true cost. A ceasefire could be a compromise, he said, but voluntarily giving up territory remains unacceptable.
Earlier, Reuters reported that despite US President Donald Trump’s ambition to end the Russia-Ukraine war by the summer of 2026, achieving that goal will be difficult because Russia is unwilling to make peace
Moreover, a report by the Institute for the Study of War said Russian leader Vladimir Putin shows no readiness to quickly end the war against Ukraine and believes in the resilience of Russia’s economy.
