The war with the Russian aggressor continues, and we shouldn’t prepare the enemy, telling where and how many servicemen and equipment we have; at the same time, Ukrainian society and the international community need to know the truth about what is happening on the front, who is killing and torturing whom. This was emphasized by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a conversation with media representatives on the occasion of the Journalist's Day.
According to the Head of State, the situation in the east is difficult, which he personally saw when he visited the frontline positions of Ukrainian troops in the Zaporizhzhia, Donetsk and Luhansk regions yesterday.
"We are keeping the situation in the Severodonetsk direction. There are more of them (the enemy - ed.), they are more powerful, but we have every chance to fight in this direction," the President said.
He noted that 10-15% of the population remained in Severodonetsk. The situation is similar in Lysychansk, Luhansk region.
Asked whether it would be more appropriate to withdraw Ukrainian forces from Severodonetsk to better positions, the President said that returning to these positions could be more expensive in terms of losses. According to him, decisions on Severodonetsk will be made depending on the development of the situation, now it is not easy, but the Ukrainian military is holding its positions.
"As for Zaporizhzhia, the situation there is the most threatening, because part (of the region - ed.) is occupied, and the enemy constantly wants to occupy Zaporizhzhia," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
In the Kharkiv direction, according to the Head of State, Ukrainian troops are gradually de-occupying villages.
The President stressed that the war in Ukraine continues, and it is important to tell the truth about the heroism of our soldiers and the cruelty of the enemy in the information space, not to reveal the secrets of Ukrainian defenders.
"As the President of a warring state, my only priority is war and how to turn war into peace, into our victory. I do absolutely everything for this," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.
He noted that he sees no problems with freedom of speech in Ukraine, despite the martial law.
"I am interested in the unity of journalists around the main victory, not around one person or another, but around saving hundreds of thousands of our people," the President stressed.
The Head of State stressed that information weapons are powerful, and it is important "for them to be directed not against us, but against the enemy."
According to Volodymyr Zelenskyy, uniting Ukrainian TV channels in the format of a telethon was the right decision.
"What can be said is only said by the military and the President… Journalists, bloggers, even the President cannot talk about some things on the air so that the army remains strong and its secrets are not known to everyone," he said.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy added that the military officials who comment on the course of hostilities are responsible for the information they provide and understand what could be made public and what could not so as not to help the enemy.
At the same time, the President noted that the media play an important role in bringing the truth to society and the international community.
"We are interested in the truth. The sincere truth about what is happening, who is killing whom, who is torturing people, and not what the Ukrainian army is shooting with. We should not prepare the enemy by telling where our drones are, how many of them we have, what hangar, when they take off, when they land. People and weapons are very expensive," he said.
The Head of State stressed that it was not about the specific names of journalists, but about the format of admission to the frontline.