• Analysis
Vitalii Kim says Ukraine will fight even if EU aid to Ukraine fails
Vitalii Kim, Ukraine's Minister for Veterans Affairs, said in Paris that Ukraine will keep resisting Russian aggression regardless of the outcome of negotiations over European financial assistance.
Fighting without a safety net
Vitalii Kim, Ukraine's Minister for Veterans Affairs, appeared on FRANCE 24's Spotlight with François Picard while a €90 billion European aid package remains uncertain and diplomacy churns around renewed speculation over Donald Trump's efforts to bring the Russian and Ukrainian presidents together. His message was that Ukraine's determination to resist Russian aggression will endure whatever the negotiations over European financial assistance produce.
"If Europe will not support us, we also will fight because it's our motherland"
Asked about the prospect of presidential talks, Kim gave a restrained response:
"I need to be politically correct to answer this question. I have no reaction. I have only my job to do."
A war felt at home
Kim, speaking during a visit to Paris for discussions with French defence officials, also described the conditions Ukrainians are living through. In Kherson, civilians face relentless bombardment and attacks by inexpensive, short-range drones, while repeated Russian strikes against Ukraine's energy infrastructure are taking a cumulative toll. He acknowledged the strain on a public worn down by prolonged warfare.
"People just get tired"
The picture he drew included:
- •Kherson civilians under relentless bombardment and short-range drone attacks
- •Russian energy strikes accumulating damage across the country
- •A population Kim described as tiring of prolonged warfare
Caring for Ukraine's veterans
As Minister for Veterans Affairs, Kim oversees a growing caseload: an estimated 1.5 million veterans already require support, with projections of substantially higher numbers in coming years. In Paris he outlined plans to simplify administrative procedures, expand mental healthcare and draw on French expertise for veteran reintegration.
His visit to Paris for discussions with French defence officials tied the veteran policy agenda directly to that cooperation, with French expertise named as a resource for reintegration efforts.
