We are hitting what is painful for Russia, and it is very painful
As the war in Ukraine enters its fifth year, President Zelenskyy moves across the map not only as a wartime leader but as an architect of new alliances — carrying Ukrainian military expertise to the Gulf, exchanging prisoners with an enemy, and watching his soldiers waste away on the very frontlines he is fighting to hold. These diplomatic journeys to Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia are not gestures of hope but acts of strategic necessity, reflecting how deeply a nation at war must reach to survive. The conflict has long since outgrown its borders, drawing in questions of energy, food, espionage, and the slow machinery of European belonging.
- Zelenskyy is actively trading Ukraine's hard-won military knowledge — drone warfare, air defence — for the energy and food security arrangements his country desperately needs to endure a prolonged war.
- A Russian missile that killed 38 passengers on an Azerbaijani plane in 2024 has done more to align Baku with Kyiv than any diplomatic communiqué could, giving Zelenskyy a partner with its own unhealed wound.
- Ukrainian long-range strikes are now reaching over 1,000 kilometres into Russian territory, hitting oil facilities and factories, with Zelenskyy claiming losses in the tens of billions — a war of attrition fought from the air.
- Photographs of skeletal, malnourished Ukrainian soldiers abandoned on the frontline without food or water for months forced a military dismissal and exposed the brutal arithmetic of survival in a grinding, supply-starved war.
- Hungary's electoral shift has cracked open the door to Ukraine's EU membership, but Germany's chancellor has already tempered expectations — the path to belonging, it seems, will outlast the urgency of the moment.
- German prosecutors are now investigating Russian phishing attacks on lawmakers, a reminder that the war's front lines run through Signal chats and server rooms as surely as they do through eastern Ukrainian mud.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived in Azerbaijan with a practical agenda: to deepen security and energy ties with one of Ukraine's more dependable partners in a region where such relationships are rare. The visit followed a meeting in Saudi Arabia with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. These are not ceremonial stops — Zelenskyy is seeking to export Ukrainian military expertise in drones and air defence to Gulf nations wary of Iranian threats, while securing energy cooperation and food arrangements that could help Ukraine sustain itself through a war with no clear end.
Azerbaijan and Ukraine have built their partnership on shared grievances. Baku has consistently backed Kyiv's territorial position and sent humanitarian aid. That solidarity deepened after a Russian anti-aircraft missile struck an Azerbaijani passenger plane in 2024, killing 38 people — an act that severed something between Moscow and Baku that diplomacy alone could not repair. For Zelenskyy, it makes Azerbaijan a natural partner across what he calls three pillars: military exports, energy, and food security.
The war itself has not paused for diplomacy. Ukrainian strikes are now reaching more than 1,000 kilometres into Russian territory, targeting oil infrastructure and manufacturing. Zelenskyy described the damage as running into the tens of billions of dollars. Meanwhile, a second prisoner exchange this month saw 193 soldiers swapped on each side — men stepping off buses hollow-eyed and exhausted, wrapped in flags, weeping as they called home. These exchanges have become one of the only remaining threads connecting the two warring nations.
The human cost of the conflict surfaced again when photographs emerged of four Ukrainian soldiers from the same unit — visibly malnourished, ribs and arms skeletal — who had been left on the frontline for months without adequate food or water. The images, shared by one soldier's wife, prompted the dismissal of the responsible commander. The brigade cited the impossibility of ground resupply so close to enemy lines. The episode was a stark reminder that in this war, even the most basic conditions of survival are not guaranteed.
On the European front, Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz acknowledged that immediate EU membership for Ukraine remains unrealistic, though he floated the idea of Ukraine attending bloc meetings without voting rights. Hungary's Viktor Orbán, long the primary obstacle to Ukraine's accession bid, lost his election earlier this month — raising cautious hopes. But Merz's measured words suggest the road to full membership will be long regardless. Germany itself is under pressure: prosecutors opened an investigation Friday into Russian phishing attacks targeting lawmakers, the latest in a pattern of cyber-operations and sabotage that has intensified since 2022. Moscow denies it all, as it always does.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy landed in Azerbaijan on Friday with a specific agenda: to talk security and energy with a country that has become one of Ukraine's more reliable partners in a region where such friendships are hard to come by. The visit followed a stop in Saudi Arabia, where he met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. These are not ceremonial trips. Zelenskyy is shopping for allies in a very practical sense—looking to export Ukrainian military expertise, particularly in drone technology and air defence, to Gulf nations that have their own reasons to worry about Iranian threats. In return, he wants energy cooperation and food security arrangements that might help Ukraine survive the grinding war on its home soil.
The diplomatic courtship reflects how far Ukraine's strategic thinking has expanded since the Russian invasion began in 2022. Azerbaijan and Ukraine have maintained warm relations, with Baku consistently backing Kyiv's territorial claims and sending humanitarian aid. The relationship has been cemented by something darker: in 2024, a Russian anti-aircraft missile mistakenly struck an Azerbaijani passenger plane, killing 38 people. That incident poisoned Moscow's ties with Baku in a way that words alone could not have done. For Zelenskyy, it means Azerbaijan is a country with its own grievances against Russia, making it a natural partner for what he describes as "actively developing" regional security arrangements across three pillars: military expertise and air defence exports, energy cooperation, and food security.
Meanwhile, the war itself continues with undiminished intensity. Ukrainian long-range strikes are reaching deep into Russian territory—more than 1,000 kilometers inside the country—targeting oil production facilities and manufacturing plants. Zelenskyy said on Thursday that Russian losses from these attacks have climbed into the tens of billions of dollars. "Of course, we are hitting what is painful for Russia, and it is very painful," he told reporters in voice messages. The strikes continue even as the United States maintains its weapons deliveries to Ukraine, a fact Zelenskyy emphasized as evidence that Western support has not wavered despite the broader regional conflict involving Iran.
On Friday, Russia and Ukraine completed their second prisoner exchange of the month, swapping 193 captured soldiers each. The images from the exchange site in northern Ukraine told their own story: men stepping off buses looking hollow and exhausted, wrapped in blue and yellow flags, embracing each other or crying as they called home. These swaps represent one of the few remaining channels of cooperation between Moscow and Kyiv, and they have become a recurring feature of the war—thousands of prisoners have been exchanged over four years, often as the only tangible result when peace talks stall.
But the human cost of the war continues to surface in ways that shock even those accustomed to its brutality. Ukraine's defence ministry fired a top commander after photographs emerged showing four soldiers from the same unit who had been left on the frontline for months without adequate food or water. The images, posted to social media by the wife of one of the men, showed them visibly malnourished—ribs prominent, arms skeletal. The brigade later acknowledged logistical problems, explaining that their position was so close to enemy lines that supplies could only arrive by air. The general staff said it had replaced the commander responsible for feeding the soldiers, but the incident exposed the grinding reality of a war where even basic survival can become a casualty.
On the diplomatic front, Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz delivered a sobering assessment of Ukraine's European prospects. There is no realistic chance of immediate EU accession, he said, though he suggested Ukraine might attend bloc meetings without voting rights. The statement came as Kyiv pushes to accelerate its bid to join the 27-nation union, a process that has been blocked by Hungary's nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. His defeat in elections earlier this month has raised hopes that this particular obstacle might finally move. But Merz's comments suggest that even with Orbán out of the way, the path to full membership will be long.
Germany itself faces mounting pressure from Russian espionage and sabotage. On Friday, German prosecutors launched an investigation into phishing attacks targeting lawmakers on the Signal messaging app, part of what one MP called a "wake-up call" about Russian operations against the country. Germany has been Germany's biggest provider of military aid to Ukraine, and it has absorbed a surge of cyber-attacks, espionage plots, and sabotage attempts since Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022. Moscow denies involvement in any of these operations, as it always does. But the pattern is unmistakable, and it suggests that the war in Ukraine is only one front in a much broader conflict between Russia and the West.
Citas Notables
Ukraine is actively developing regional security arrangements across three key areas: military expertise exports, energy cooperation, and food security— Volodymyr Zelenskyy
There is no prospect of Ukraine's immediate accession to the EU, but Kyiv could join meetings of bloc members without voting rights— German Chancellor Friedrich Merz
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
Why is Zelenskyy going to Azerbaijan and Saudi Arabia right now, when the fighting is so intense?
Because Ukraine can't win this war alone, and it can't survive it alone either. He's looking for partners who have their own reasons to distrust Russia—Azerbaijan because of that plane, the Gulf states because of Iran. He's offering them something they want: Ukrainian military expertise, especially drones and air defence. In return, he gets energy and food security.
The prisoner exchanges—are those a sign that peace might be coming?
No. They're a sign that the war is so grinding that even the smallest acts of cooperation feel significant. Thousands of men have been swapped over four years. It's one of the only things Moscow and Kyiv still do together, and it happens because both sides have soldiers they want back. It's not negotiation. It's just the math of attrition.
What struck you most about the story of those malnourished soldiers?
That it happened at all. Not the logistics problem—war creates those. But that it took photographs on social media to force accountability. A commander was fired only because a wife posted images of her husband's ribs. That's the kind of thing that should never need to be exposed that way.
Germany seems to be caught between supporting Ukraine and protecting itself from Russian attacks.
Germany is the biggest military supplier to Ukraine, so it's already made its choice. But yes, it's paying a price—cyber-attacks, espionage, sabotage plots. Russia is testing how far it can push without triggering a direct response. Germany is trying to figure out where that line is.
Is Ukraine's EU bid realistic?
Not immediately. Merz was clear about that. But the fact that Orbán lost his election changes the calculus. Hungary was the main blocker. Now there's a path forward, even if it's slow. Ukraine is thinking long-term—about what comes after the war, about anchoring itself to Europe.