Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of seeking to replicate the 1938 Munich Agreement, warning that Putin aims to seize parts of Ukraine as Adolf Hitler did with Czechoslovakia. Zelenskyy made the comparison during a speech at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, February 14, 2026.
The Ukrainian leader detailed the extensive damage inflicted on his country’s energy infrastructure, stating that not a single power plant remains untouched by Russian attacks.
“Putin hopes to repeat Munich. But not Munich in 2007, when he only talked about dividing Europe, but Munich in 1938, when Putin actually started dividing Europe,” Zelenskyy said, according to reports from the conference. He was referencing Putin’s 2007 speech at the same conference, where the Russian president outlined a vision for Russia’s return to power.
Zelenskyy provided a stark picture of the scale of recent attacks, telling world leaders that Ukraine faced 6,000 drones of various types – primarily Shahed drones – 150 missiles, and 5,000 guided bombs in January alone. “And it’s like that every month. Imagine something like that over your cities,” he said, as reported by The Independent.
He further stated, according to Ukrainska Pravda, that Russia is losing 156 soldiers – killed or severely wounded – for every kilometer of Ukrainian territory occupied in the Donetsk region.
“I want to talk about the price of war. What does a month of war mean for Putin? Just in December, our forces eliminated 35,000 occupants – killed or severely wounded,” Zelenskyy stated. He added that Russian losses decreased to around 30,000 in January, leading to a slight reduction in the intensity of Russian attacks.
Acknowledging Allied Support, Including Czech Initiative
“There is even a clear price that Russia pays for every kilometer of occupied Ukrainian territory. On the front in the Donetsk region – and everyone knows this is one of the areas of the most intense fighting – the price for Russia per kilometer is 156 soldiers,” Zelenskyy explained.
The Ukrainian president indicated that Russia is mobilizing approximately 40,000 soldiers each month, but not all are deployed to the front lines, meaning the overall size of the Russian contingent in Ukraine is not growing this year.
“The mission of our army is clear: to destroy more Russian occupants, because they are occupants. And the goal is specific: at least 50,000 per month,” Zelenskyy said.
Zelenskyy also expressed gratitude for the support of allies, including the United States and Europe. He specifically thanked the Czech Republic for its ammunition initiative, which is providing artillery munitions to Ukraine, and directly thanked Czech President Petr Pavel, who was present in the audience. The initiative, initially threatened with cancellation by a new Czech governing coalition, will continue, though without direct financial contributions from Prague.
Zelenskyy Open to Elections with Ceasefire
During a panel discussion following his speech, Zelenskyy stated he would be willing to hold presidential elections in Ukraine if a two-month ceasefire could be secured. “Give us a ceasefire. President Trump can make it: force Putin, achieve a ceasefire. Then our parliament will change the law and we will go to elections,” he said. Reports indicate that former U.S. President Donald Trump is urging Zelenskyy to hold elections, despite the fact that Ukraine’s constitution prohibits elections while the country is in a state of war.
