War won’t end unless Crimea is liberated, Zelenskyy says
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of Ukraine, a video grab

Kyiv’s ultimate goal is the de-occupation of Crimea, a peninsula annexed by Russia in 2014 in a blatant violation of international law, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy told CNN.

"We cannot imagine Ukraine without Crimea. And while Crimea is under the Russian occupation, it means only one thing: the war is not over yet," Mr Zelenskyy said.

Asked whether there was any scenario under which there could be peace without Crimea, Zelensky said: "It will not be [a] victory then."

The de-occupation of Crimea has long been floated as part of Ukraine’s ongoing or further counteroffensive, aimed to restore its territorial integrity.

The Ukrainian president’s representative in Crimea, Tamila Tasheva, revealed earlier this year the work was ongoing on a strategy for the reconstruction of the peninsula that was annexed by Russia back in 2014.

Ukraine’s defence minister, Oleksii Reznikov, believes Kyiv will liberate the Crimean peninsula without a fight.

war in UkraineCrimeaVolodymyr Zelenskyy