Volodymyr Zelenskyy gave an interview Wednesday evening to journalists from four European public broadcasters. ERR's Europe correspondent Joakim Klementi asked Zelenskyy what Vladimir Putin is afraid of.

"Putin is afraid only of his own society, of the destabilization of his own society. That's what he fears. But no one else can influence that. He influences it himself. His economy influences it. Sanctions policy influences it," Zelenskyy responded.

He added that if Ukraine's allies demonstrated their true capabilities and strength, they could put pressure on Putin and, in turn, destabilize Russian society.

According to Zelenskyy, Putin also fears losing power, which is likewise tied to the potential destabilization of Russian society and to international isolation.

"Of course, there has not yet been a complete isolation of Putin. The Global South did not isolate him — they continued to maintain ties. In my view, that helped sustain his system. If they had isolated him, it would have affected his society — society would have seen that he is alone, that he is in the wrong. But instead, they saw that several countries were supporting Putin," Zelenskyy said.

"It is important that the United States does not support him now. That it doesn't help him escape global isolation. I think that would be dangerous. That would be one of the most dangerous moments," the Ukrainian president added.

In response to Klementi's question about what Putin wants, Zelenskyy said Putin wants to go down in history with an impact comparable to that of the Soviet Union. At the same time, he believes Putin wants even more than that.

"He would like to restore influence over all the former Soviet republics that are now independent. But he wants a bit more than that. And that could undoubtedly lead to direct confrontation with the West. That's the message of his propaganda. If you analyze Russian media propaganda, it says they must prepare for war with the West — they want that, because every war prolongs Putin's life," Zelenskyy said.

Caroline Roux, a journalist with France Télévisions, asked Zelenskyy whether Putin fears Europe. In Zelenskyy's view, Putin fears the unity of Europe and the United States — and to some extent, the Russian leader has succeeded in weakening that alliance.

"His goal is to weaken and divide that alliance. I think in some ways, he has been successful. Not always and not in everything. He has tried to target the European Union itself. He has partly succeeded through Hungary — and I'm not talking about the Hungarian people, but about its leaders," Zelenskyy said, citing Hungary's role in blocking EU sanctions and other measures aimed at pressuring Russia.

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