Former Zelensky Spokeswoman Says Kiev Must End Conflict to Preserve Ukraine, Russian Agency Reports

Yulia Mendel, a former spokeswoman for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, said Kiev needs to end the conflict with Russia in order to preserve Ukraine, according to a report published by the Russian state news agency TASS.

TASS reported that Mendel pointed to a difficult situation facing Ukrainian soldiers in the area of Dobropolye, a settlement in the Russian-controlled Donetsk People's Republic, as part of her comments.

The specific remarks attributed to Mendel, including further details of what she said about the military situation near Dobropolye or her reasoning for calling for an end to the conflict, were not fully detailed in the available report.

TASS is a Russian state-owned news agency, and its reporting on the Ukraine conflict routinely reflects the perspective of Russian authorities. The claims attributed to Mendel could not be independently verified at the time of this report.

Dobropolye and the surrounding Donetsk region have been sites of ongoing fighting between Russian and Ukrainian forces during the conflict, which began with Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Both Moscow and Kiev have periodically issued differing accounts of the situation on various front lines.

Neither Mendel nor representatives of the Ukrainian government could be reached for comment on the report.