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Zelensky's desire to maintain army size proves he is not thinking about peace — politician

According to the former Ukrainian PM, it was already a "big problem" for Ukraine to maintain an army of up to 180,000 servicemen before the conflict

MOSCOW, December 25. /TASS/. Vladimir Zelensky's decision to keep the Ukrainian armed forces at 800,000 troops during peacetime, despite the economy's inability to support such a large military, confirms his lack of interest in peace, former Ukrainian Prime Minister Nikolay Azarov told TASS.

"Zelensky is keeping 800,000 troops, which is completely unrealistic. It's essentially a wartime army. In other words, Zelensky is not thinking about peace at all," the politician said, commenting on Zelensky’s peace plan.

"It is absolutely unrealistic when you think about Ukraine's economic situation. That is, the Ukrainian economy cannot support such a huge army," the former prime minister added.

According to him, it was already a "big problem" for Ukraine to maintain an army of up to 180,000 servicemen before the conflict. "And now it's 800,000 , so yeah. What is the calculation based on? The calculation is based on only one thing: the continuation of military operations," Azarov concluded.

On December 24, Zelensky announced to reporters a 20-point plan that Ukraine allegedly discussed during negotiations in the US. It includes the following points: the size of the Ukrainian armed forces will be fixed at 800,000 servicemen in peacetime; Ukraine's non-nuclear status; security guarantees for Kiev based on NATO Article 5; Ukraine's accession to the EU at a specified time; the introduction of educational programs in Ukrainian schools that promote tolerance for different cultures; freedom of navigation on the Dnieper River with the demilitarization of the Kinburn Spit; the exchange of prisoners according to the "all-for-all" formula; and the holding of presidential elections in Ukraine. There are also points on territorial issues and the Zaporozhye Nuclear Power Plant, but the US and Ukraine have not reached a compromise on these issues.

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