Moscow has said it will not allow Kiev to possess nuclear arms under any circumstances

Vladimir Zelensky has demanded that Kiev's Western backers either admit Kiev to NATO or supply it with nuclear weapons, arguing that nothing less can protect Ukraine against a nuclear-armed Russia.

In an interview with French newspaper Le Monde on Friday, Zelensky lashed out at Ukraine's critics, who he said did not believe in Kiev's ultimate victory over Russia due to Moscow's nuclear arsenal.

"When everyone says that Ukraine will not win this war because Russia is a nuclear power, then tell me, what do you think, what security guarantees should Ukraine have to oppose it? Which? NATO? Nuclear weapons? Well then, people should speak with us in the same way," he said.

He admitted, though, that "until now, no one has asked us that question," adding that he found "astonishing" the fact that "no one is talking about Russia, at least in the same terms."

Zelensky's comments came after he told Reuters earlier this week that Washington's post-war security guarantees were contingent on Kiev withdrawing from the parts of Russia's Donbass it still occupies. Donbass, along with two other former Ukrainian regions, overwhelmingly voted to join Russia in 2022, and Moscow has insisted that Kiev's full withdrawal from the territory was a key condition for a sustainable peace.

However, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio pushed back against Zelensky, accusing him of telling a "lie."

"I saw him say that, and it's unfortunate he would say that, because he knows that's not true and that's not what he was told," Rubio stated.

"What he was told is the obvious: security guarantees are not going to kick in until there's an end to a war, because otherwise you're getting yourself involved in the war."

Zelensky has, on numerous occasions, denied that Ukraine was seeking to acquire nuclear weapons. However, he told Sky News last month that he would accept nuclear weapons from Britain and France "with pleasure, but I didn't have propositions," as he responded to Moscow's accusation that London and Paris had plans to secretly arm Ukraine with atomic capabilities.

Russia has repeatedly said it would not allow Ukraine to acquire nuclear weapons under any circumstances. Moscow has also suggested that Zelensky's openness to getting his hands on nuclear weapons before the escalation of the conflict in 2022 was one of the reasons for the start of the hostilities.