The video recording has been published on YouTube by the Office of the President of Ukraine.
"And he heard my position. My stance may differ from loyalty to certain actions. I believe that this should not have been done either to Ukraine or to Europe, honestly. Because Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons," emphasized Zelensky. "I do not claim that it should have been given up or not. In my opinion, it shouldn’t have been, given that we were attacked. But even if you decided, either America (the policy of America at that time and Russia – they were united in this) and forced Ukraine to give up its nuclear weapons, I believe that it was simply, well, at least dangerous."
According to the President of Ukraine, nuclear weapons should have been exchanged "for real security guarantees."
"And at that time – it was only NATO. And to be honest, even today – it is only NATO… In peacetime – it is NATO, and during war we understand: it is a strong army. So if I were to exchange nuclear weapons, I would exchange it for something, you know, something very strong that can actually stop any aggressor, regardless of their greatness, their territory, their army, etc. And that is – a strong army and a security bloc. Therefore, I believe that it was foolish, completely foolish, illogical, and very irresponsible to make that exchange," Zelensky stressed.
He added that at that time, "big countries with larger economies" influenced Ukraine and "it was not easy to refuse," but "one must know how to say no."
"By the way, especially when you hold a position like the president of a country. And I told him [Trump] that we exchanged for nothing, traded nuclear weapons for war. It started later, but really – for war. And he said: 'Yes, I understand what you are talking about,'" Zelensky reported.