Zelensky: Russian-occupied territories could get worse than Chornobyl

President Volodymyr Zelensky is convinced that the situation in Crimea has worsened after the illegal occupation by Russia, and the peninsula has no future without Ukraine.
“There are people in Crimea who once shouted that Russia would come and they would be a ‘pearl by the sea’. But nothing happened. It got worse, there is no tourism, no businesses, no jobs, no water, prices soared. So I think that they have no future without Ukraine,” President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with Le Figaro on the eve of his meeting with Emmanuel Macron in Paris.

In his opinion, many civilians in the territories, which are not controlled by Ukraine temporarily, now live as if in captivity but consider themselves Ukrainians.

“For me, Crimea and Donbas did not go anywhere, and they are definitely our territories. And they will not be happy without Ukraine. We see this through the example of occupied territories: Abkhazia, Transnistria, etc. I do not see any scientific breakthroughs, top businesses, skyscrapers like in Hong Kong. I do not see life there. That's why I do not see happiness there. And when people are unhappy, they leave these territories. So, these will be ‘dead’ territories. They will be worse than Chornobyl. Because Chornobyl is visited by tourists. And these will be just ‘dead’ regions, unfortunately," the President said.

On April 16, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky and First Lady Olena Zelenska make a working visit to France. Russia's escalation of the security situation on Ukraine's eastern borders is expected to be the main topic of the meeting between the presidents of Ukraine and France.