Zelensky gave a three-hour interview to a popular American podcaster: key highlights.

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, recorded a three-hour interview with popular American podcaster Lex Fridman. In this interview, he discussed events on the front lines, shared his views on the newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump and NATO, and talked with Fridman about matters concerning Ukraine and beyond.

The podcast was published on the President's Office website. Fridman and Zelensky conversed in English and Ukrainian, respectively. The Ukrainian president refused to give the interview in Russian, stating that he does not want to provide Russian leader Vladimir Putin with another reason to claim that Ukrainians and Russians are "one nation."

We have gathered the key points from Zelensky's interview with Fridman:

• Zelensky holds no respect for Russia, Putin, or the Russian people. He described Putin as a deaf dictator and Russians as a silent people, who are futile to address, as was evident at the beginning of the war; it yielded no results. The disrespect towards Russia, Russians, and the Russian language in Ukraine is currently due to the war. Nevertheless, Russian is not legally banned in Ukraine.
• "This is bullshit!": Zelensky emotionally described the actions of allies before the onset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
• At the start of the war, Lukashenko called and apologized to Zelensky for the missiles flying from Belarus and the entry of Russian troops.
• Trump could become the first world leader to fly to Ukraine by plane after the war ends.
• There were companies in Ukraine that wanted to profit from the war. They were not allowed to do so and felt offended.
• Corruption in Ukraine is on par with that in Europe. Ukraine's anti-corruption system is one of the most complex in the world. Interestingly, much of what is called corruption in Ukraine is referred to as "lobbying" in the West and is legal.
• Ukraine has imprisoned Kolomoisky. Neither the U.S. nor Europe could achieve this.
• Security guarantees without the U.S. are not needed, as they hold no value without the U.S.
• Ukraine does not need a new Budapest Memorandum. "In 2014, the security guarantors of the Budapest Memorandum couldn't care less about Ukraine."
• Ukraine will agree to a ceasefire only if it receives all necessary weapons to repel a potential Russian attack.
• Putin fears Trump. This should be leveraged. Ukraine hopes that Trump can end the war, as he currently has all the means to do so.
• North Korea could send another 30, 40, or even 500 thousand soldiers to Ukraine, as the West is doing nothing to prevent this.
• Zelensky commented on Putin's statements about his "love" for the Russian peoples. "Did he kill Chechens out of love? Don't they matter?"
• Elections in Ukraine will only take place after the war, as Ukrainian legislation is structured this way. Regarding a second term – there are currently more important issues than that.
• Ukraine would like to reduce taxes, but this is only possible after the war.
• Zelensky rejects the notion that he is controlled by any oligarchs. "I am an independent and ambitious person; I cannot submit to anyone."
• The president expressed satisfaction that he has people like Yermak around him.
• Zelensky proposed to Trump to allocate $300 billion of frozen Russian assets to Ukraine so it could purchase weapons from the United States.
• Ukraine must join NATO. This is non-negotiable. Kyiv is even willing for Article 5 not to apply to temporarily occupied territories.
• One should not repeat the actions of Merkel, who hindered Ukraine's invitation to NATO to please the Kremlin.

Who is Lex Fridman?

Lex Fridman is one of the most well-known podcasters in the U.S., alongside Joe Rogan and propagandist Tucker Carlson. However, unlike them, Fridman engages in dialogues with genuine thought leaders, scientists, and other prominent figures. In his studio, Fridman has hosted U.S. President Donald Trump, controversial rapper Kanye West, Elon Musk, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, and others.

At the end of 2024, Fridman publicly invited Zelensky to record an interview, to which the Ukrainian president promptly agreed. The interview was recorded just before the New Year.

It is worth noting that recently, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky gave his first major interview in 2025. He did this during the National Telethon "Unified News." In the interview, Zelensky shared his expectations from the newly elected U.S. President Donald Trump, discussed when the war might end, and what would happen on the front lines.