Zelenskyy says Ukraine has shifted momentum in war, honors Lindsey Graham

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview with Fox News on Tuesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin has lost the initiative in the war between the two countries, arguing that Ukraine’s military technology has changed the battlefield dynamic.

Speaking to Fox News host Sean Hannity after the funeral of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, Zelenskyy evaluated Graham’s support for Ukraine while discussing the state of the war and the possibilities of peace negotiations.

“Since the beginning of the war, since Putin said he would occupy us for two, three days, we are now building a huge technology industry,” Zelenskyy said. “We have 500 companies with very strong technologies.”

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The Ukrainian president said the conflict had become an innovation race, with weapons such as drones quickly becoming obsolete unless adapted, and strategy constantly evolving.

“We understand that this war changes every three, six months,” he said. “We have to change the technology.”

“We have to be faster than Putin because Putin has more people… and we have to save our people and use more technology than before. [their] people.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday that he thought the war with Ukraine could end soon. (Iskender Nemenov/AFP)

Ukraine has demonstrated its ability to hit military targets deep inside Russia.

Hannity pointed to Ukrainian attacks outside Moscow and attacks that temporarily disrupted the power grid in Russian-occupied Crimea. Zelenskyy said his country’s increased military capacity was shifting momentum away from Moscow.

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“Putin is losing 30,000 soldiers a month,” he said. “There are so many casualties, but he doesn’t want to stop this war. Take the initiative now [is] It’s out of Putin’s hands.”

Zelenskyy stated that Kiev continues to press for a ceasefire that could pave the way for a final solution, but his counterpart is not interested in any dialogue, adding that they last spoke in 2020.

Fire crews extinguished the fire that broke out after the Russian attack in the Kiev region of Ukraine on Wednesday, July 9, 2025. (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP)

“Every day we want this war to be stopped and negotiations to be held. [a] “There should be a ceasefire for a while and diplomats should be given the opportunity to negotiate,” he said. “But Putin does not want it. So that’s the problem.”

‘A BIG DEAL’: GRAHAM’S LAST MISSION PROGRESSES AFTER HIS DEATH

Much of the interview also focused on Graham, whom Zelenskyy described as one of Ukraine’s oldest and strongest supporters.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Graham has visited Ukraine 10 times since the full-scale Russian invasion. (Presidency of Ukraine/Anatolia/Getty Images)

“So many things have changed because of people like Lindsey,” he said. “We had supporters from the very beginning who really believed in Ukraine, who believed that Putin couldn’t invade us, and he couldn’t.”

According to Zelenskyy, Graham visited Ukraine about 10 times during the war, including trips near the front lines.

“He knew everything about Ukraine,” Zelenskyy said. “He knew the situation on the battlefield, the cities, even the small villages.”

Zelenskyy also praised Lindsey O. Graham’s Russia and Iran Sanctions Act of 2026It passed the Senate on a bipartisan vote of 86-12 and heads to the House. The law would impose comprehensive sanctions on individuals and institutions that support Russia’s war against Ukraine.

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Earlier Tuesday, Zelenskyy met with President Donald Trump at the White House, where the leaders discussed expanding defense cooperation. Zelenskyy said Trump agreed to provide Ukraine with licenses allowing it to produce American-designed Patriot missiles domestically.

WASHINGTON, DC – JULY 28: (—-EDITORIAL USE ONLY – MANDATORY CREDIT – ‘ZELENSKYY SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNT / DISTRIBUTION’ – NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS – DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CUSTOMERS —-) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy (left) meets with US President Donald Trump (R) At the White House during his visit to Washington, DC, United States, on July 28, 2026. (Photo: Zelenskyy Social Media Account/Anadolu, via Getty Images)

Trump wrote social media He said the meeting “went very well.”