‘You can stop your war’: Zelenskyy’s open letter to Putin – in full | Ukraine
In his open letter to Vladimir Putin, Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for a face-to-face meeting with the Russian President to end the war against Ukraine.
The letter lays out Zelenskyy’s view on the four-year-old conflict, saying that while Ukrainians’ resilience remains intact, most Russians are fed up with its effects and are ready for peace.
The Ukrainian president has rarely addressed Putin directly but has repeatedly called for talks with him, saying they are necessary for any agreement on territory. Putin has previously ruled out such direct talks, falsely calling Zelenskyy an “illegitimate” leader and saying he would only meet with him to finalize a previously agreed deal.
Here is the full text of Zelenskyy’s letter published on the president’s website and his office says it has been shipped to other countries, including the United States.
4 June 2026 – 21:20
Open Letter
To the President of the Russian Federation
From the President of Ukraine
When you came to power in Russia more than 26 years ago, many people in Ukraine viewed you favorably. That’s how it was. But this is now a thing of the past.
The overwhelming majority of Ukrainians now agree that our long-range drones are in St. He welcomes his visit to the opening of your forum in St. Petersburg, traveling more than 1,000 kilometers. As you know very well, this distance is not the limit of our capabilities.
Your stay in power for 26 years has completely changed the agenda of relations between Ukraine and Russia. Our nations have moved from discussions about trade and other civil matters to talking almost exclusively about strikes and casualties.
You spent almost half of the 26 years you were in power in Russia fighting against Ukraine.
Whatever you say about NATO, geopolitics or the Russian language, this war is your personal choice; A war with no real cause. This is how history will remember it.
Those years could have been very different.
We often hear that you are satisfied with this war. Of course, not when it comes to the security of your home in Valdai or your parade in Moscow. Your own life is valuable to you.
But now we can all see that Russians are becoming less bothered by this reality, as the war brings more and more negative consequences to Russia.
They don’t like our drones and missiles.
They do not like gas shortages and ever-increasing prices.
They do not like constant restrictions.
They do not like your intention to launch a second wave of mobilization in Ukraine to spread the war in another direction or use it against other countries neighboring Russia.
They don’t like the fact that your war has no end in sight.
Yes, you can still force the Russians to exist in this way. But your resources are running out significantly.
You won’t have enough money or political capital to continue buying the loyalty of Russians as you have for the last 26 years.
And we will do everything we can to ensure the world helps bring that moment closer.
As you like to say, “we need to make the numbers work.”
Yesterday I received a report on the losses of your army on the Ukrainian front during May. The number of dead and seriously injured Russian soldiers once again exceeded 30,000. We maintain this level every month and have video confirmation of each of your losses; These are not empty claims.
We know that 63% of your casualties on the battlefield were killed, only 37% were wounded. No army in the 21st century can afford such a ratio. And the share of those killed will continue to increase.
After everything your war has brought to our country, we are not worried about the fate of Russian soldiers in Ukraine.
But I care about Ukrainians.
We are losing our people and every loss is painful for us. Even if the ratio of Ukrainian losses to Russian losses is five to one or six to one, this is still of great importance.
It is also important to regularly postpone every few months the deadline you have set for capturing our regions, especially the Donetsk region. And you won’t be able to catch it this year either.
But we do not want a permanent war in Ukraine. We know very well that a life without war is infinitely better. And we want to achieve this.
I believe that the majority of Russians will also respond positively to this, and you know it.
Many people did not believe that Ukraine could last that long. You didn’t believe it. And those who advised you did not believe it. This was a mistake.
You didn’t expect major resistance from Ukraine, nor did you foresee things going this far. Yet we are all here; We are in the fifth year of this large-scale war.
Don’t be afraid to choose your way out of this battle. This is the most important thing required of you right now.
Ukraine retained its independence. And he will protect it. Despite all predictions to the contrary.
We have brought together many people around the world to stand for Ukraine and against you. We found the weapons and financing we needed.
We get support. You get sanctions. And this will continue until justice is achieved for Ukraine, the justice we seek and the justice that can be achieved.
We will not allow those who try to persuade you that sanctions against Russia will be significantly eased and support for Ukraine will significantly decrease without a meaningful change in your attitude towards Ukraine to succeed. Orban’s example shows how those who choose to help Russia in its war against us end up in disgrace.
Ukraine endured harsh winters while you tried to destroy our energy system. We were determined, and even in the darkness the endurance of the Ukrainians remained intact.
We brought the war to your territory, and you wouldn’t have been able to handle it without North Korea’s help. You are the first Russian monarch to appeal to Pyongyang for help.
And today, for the first time in Russian history, you are completely dependent on China.
You believed that the Ukrainians would not have the strength to defend themselves. But today our people are helping our partners in the Middle East and the Gulf build their own defenses.
You were hoping for civil unrest in Ukraine. Instead, it was your own military formations that rebelled against you. June 23 will mark another anniversary of this event, and silence will not erase this fact from history.
And now it is you who your own officials, businessmen and propagandists look at with obvious fatigue. The world can see this.
The world is not bored with Ukraine, as you had long hoped. But there is growing fatigue in Russia, even among countries around the world that help you bypass sanctions and keep your economy afloat.
It is impossible not to notice this. After 26 years in power, age is starting to take its toll. And over time, your fatigue will increase even more.
We have seen intelligence reports that indicate that you are currently considering plans to continue the war into 2027 and 2028. We also know that you hope that ballistic missiles will accomplish things for you that nothing else can. You want to draw Belarus further into this war, and we have to prepare for it now. We see that you are trying to organize something around Transnistria. Your propagandists in one way or another threaten every country neighboring Russia. Do you really want to experience all this?
The choice is now yours.
Enough with the war.
Ukraine proposes to end this war.
This must be done honestly, with dignity and with the guarantee that the war will not flare up again.
We see that the USA is completely focused on the Iran issue, and it would be wrong to expect the war in Europe to become the center of attention.
Ukraine proposes to end this war through direct interaction between us and you.
I propose a meeting.
Everyone heard your representatives smilingly saying that I could supposedly come to Moscow. However, after these 26 years, there is nothing a Ukrainian leader can do in your capital; just as there is nothing a Russian leader can do in Kiev.
There are countries that have traditionally hosted leaders to solve problems of war and peace. Switzerland, Türkiye, Arab world countries; many are able and willing to host such a meeting.
Leaders are the ones who solve fundamental problems. It has always been this way and it will always be this way.
I propose to set a clear date for such a meeting.
We heard that you were promised the solution of some problems concerning Ukraine and Europe in Alaska. But you can see for yourself that Ukrainian and European issues are not resolved in Anchorage.
Other participants with whom an agreement has been reached may also participate in the bilateral pathway to be established between us.
Since the war is taking place in Europe and Ukraine needs security guarantees, it would make sense to involve in the war people who can really be guarantors while you are looking for security guarantees for yourself.
We believe that Europe, that is, those who have the capacity to really influence the situation, must be part of this process.
We also believe that the United States should be part of the process. This is what can help shape a new security architecture for our part of the world.
We have already experienced many agreements with Russia that ultimately failed, including the Minsk agreements. Therefore, we must first find direct answers to the questions that remain between us, and not hide behind formulas, technical working groups and endless time lost in shuttle diplomacy.
Your war has permanently separated Ukraine and Russia.
Today’s front line is the line where diplomacy should begin.
Ukraine is ready for a full ceasefire for the duration of negotiations. This is standard practice, and current developments around Iran further reinforce this point. Trying to create real silence is the best way to start talking to each other. We believe that this will be a real ceasefire, not just an initiative; if that’s what you want.
You know that the United States has the ability to monitor the ceasefire along the cessation of hostilities.
Ukraine is ready for a wholesale exchange of prisoners of war, and this could be a good start to ending the war.
Serious steps must be taken for the return of civilians and children taken away during the war.
We need to determine what kind of future awaits the Ukrainian and Russian generations that will come after us.
Unless you personally come to the conclusion that it is time for this war to end, Ukraine will continue to struggle for its own existence. We will have those who support us.
But you will have to fight much harder for your own existence; Not Russia’s, but your own existence. And this is not a threat from me or Ukraine. It’s a well-known fact of Russian history: When Russia gets tired, change comes.
We can work against this fatigue.
You can stop your war.
The eternal memory of all whose lives were taken in this war.
Victory to Ukraine!
