In a Tuesday interview with a Japanese news agency, detailed by Ukraine's state-run outlet Ukrinform, Zelensky said, “We do not have enough forces to return Crimea. Our army does not have enough forces. We must seek diplomatic means, but [this will be possible] only after we know that we are so strong that the Russians will not return with aggression again. Then we can think about diplomatic steps.”

Zelensky highlighted the “strategic” importance of Crimea, noting that control of the region impacts Black Sea security and global food supply chains. He highlighted how Russian President Vladimir Putin’s annexation of Crimea blocked the Black Sea and agricultural products from Ukraine did not reach countries in Africa, Asia, and Europe.

While Zelensky emphasized Ukraine's intent to regain all occupied territories, he noted that diplomacy is now the preferred method, saying, “will return to all our occupied lands, preferably through diplomatic channels, because all this minimizes casualties.”

Still, Ukraine has repeatedly called for increased Western support, citing the 1994 Budapest Memorandum, in which Ukraine surrendered its nuclear arsenal in exchange for security assurances from Western nations. On Tuesday, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry marked the memorandum’s 30th anniversary by urging the West to strengthen its security guarantees.

“This mistake must be corrected. Ukraine must be provided with clear, legally binding security guarantees that align with its significant contribution to global nuclear disarmament and the maintenance of international peace and security,” the Foreign Ministry said. “We call on the United States and the United Kingdom, signatories to the Budapest Memorandum, France and China, which have acceded to it, and all states-parties to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, to support the provision of effective security guarantees to Ukraine.”

The Foreign Ministry has also emphasized Ukraine’s agenda to join NATO, saying the country “will not accept any alternatives, surrogates or substitutes for Ukraine’s full membership in NATO.”