Zelensky says Ukraine needs 'enduring peace'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Sunday he told President-elect Donald Trump and French leader Emmanuel Macron in talks a day earlier that Kyiv needs an "enduring peace" that Moscow would not "destroy in a few years."

The trio met at the Elysee Palace as Moscow's invasion nears the three-year mark.

"I stated that we need a just and enduring peace -- one that the Russians will not be able to destroy in a few years, as they have done repeatedly in the past," Zelensky said.

In a rare admission of the war's human cost, Zelensky said that 43,000 Ukrainian soldiers had been killed and that 370,000 had been wounded.

Both sides are believed to have suffered huge losses and the reported numbers are believed to be vastly lower than the real figure.

Trump had earlier said that the Ukrainian leader was keen for a deal.

"Ukrainians want peace more than anyone else. Russia brought war to our land, and it is Russia that most seeks to disrupt the possibility of peace," he said.

Zelensky said Ukraine needs "effective guarantees for peace", with Kyiv for months pushing for security guarantees from NATO.

He also called on allies not to "turn a blind eye to occupation."

"A ceasefire without guarantees can be reignited at any moment, as Putin has already done before," he said.

"War cannot be endless -- only peace mut be permanent and reliable," Zelensky added.