President Zelenskyy’s speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy delivered a speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Jan. 22, following a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump. In an emotional address, he spoke about European security, Russia’s war against Ukraine, and what he described as the West’s lack of decisive action.

Zelenskyy urged the European Union to stop living in a “Groundhog Day” loop, develop its own defense capabilities, increase pressure on Russia, hold the country’s leadership accountable, and stop relying solely on NATO and the United States.

Below is an excerpt from his speech.

Thank you very much, dear friends.

Everyone remembers the great American film Groundhog Day with Bill Murray and Andie MacDowell. Yes. But no one would want to live like that — repeating the same thing for weeks, months, and, of course, years. And yet, that is exactly how we live now. This is our life, and every forum like this one proves it.

Just last year here in Davos, I ended my speech with the words: “Europe needs to know how to defend itself.”

A year has passed, and nothing has changed. We are still in a situation where I must say the same words again.

But why? The answer is not only about the threats that already exist or may yet appear. Each year brings something new — for Europe and for the world.

Everyone turned their attention to Greenland, and it is clear that most leaders simply are not sure what to do about it. It seems like everyone is just waiting for America to cool down on this topic, hoping it will pass. But what if it does not? What then?

There was so much talk about the protests in Iran, but they were drowned in blood. The world has not helped the Iranian people enough — that is true — it stood aside. In Europe, there were Christmas and New Year celebrations, the seasonal holidays. By the time politicians came back to work and began forming a position, the Ayatollah had already killed thousands.

And what will Iran become after this bloodshed? If the regime survives, it sends a clear signal to every bully: kill enough people, and you stay in power. Who in Europe needs that message to become reality? And yet, Europe has not even tried to build its own response.

Let’s look at the Western Hemisphere. President Trump led an operation in Venezuela, and Maduro was arrested. There were different opinions about it, but the fact remains: Maduro is on trial in New York. Sorry, but Putin is not on trial.

This is the fourth year of the biggest war in Europe since World War II. And the man who started it is not only free — he is still fighting for his frozen money in Europe. And you know what? He is having some success. It is true. It is Putin who is trying to decide how the frozen Russian assets should be used, not those who have the power to punish him for this war.

Thankfully, the European Union decided to freeze Russian assets indefinitely, and I am grateful for that. Thank you, Ursula. Thank you, António, and all the leaders who helped. But when the time came to use those assets to defend against Russian aggression, the decision was blocked. 

Putin managed this. Yes — managed to stop Europe.

Watch the full speech: