We're closing our live coverage now - thanks for following, that was a marathon news conference from Zelensky.

But we learnt a fair bit. Zelensky revealed that he wants to mobilise another 500,000 people - but he acknowledged it would be a sensitive issue.

He said he needed more details before backing the move, hinting that 500,000 soldiers were already on the front.

You can read our latest write-up here, or for all our latest stories on the Ukraine war, that's here.

Paul Adams
Diplomatic correspondent

Image source, EPA

President Zelensky revealed today that he’s considering costly proposals to mobilise a further half a million people.

It comes as commanders report ammunition shortages across the long front line.

Packages of US and EU support to Ukraine - both military and economic - are stuck, probably until at least the New Year.

Zelensky was asked by the BBC if he thought there was a danger Ukraine was losing the war, which he flatly denied.

It’s his job to strike a defiant and positive tone - to try to rally his country.

But earlier this year there were big hopes of a breakthrough with an eagerly-anticipated Ukrainian counter-offensive that, in the end, hasn’t done much to change the front lines.

Asked about a reported rift between the president and his top general, Valery Zaluzhny, Zelensky insisted the two still had a good working relationship.

On the question of how long the war might take, the president said no-one could answer that.

But Ukraine, he said, would not be let down by its partners.

And what if Donald Trump returned to the White House after next year’s US presidential election?

Zelensky said he didn’t think US policy would change. But if it did, he acknowledged, this could have a significant impact on the war.

Image source, Getty Images

Moving away from what Zelensky said in his news conference for a moment - Russia has responded angrily to Finland signing a military agreement with the US.

The deal gives US troops broad access to areas along Finland's 1,340km (830-mile) border with Russia.

The Russian Foreign Ministry summoned Finland's ambassador and said it would not leave "Nato's military build-up" on its borders unanswered.

Finland enjoyed relatively friendly relations with the USSR during the Cold War, but decided to join Nato after Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

More here.

Adam Durbin
Live reporter

Image source, EPA

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke for more than two hours, covering topics from the state of the front lines, whether Western support is waning and emerging domestic political troubles in Ukraine.

Here's a quick summary of some key things he said:

• Asked by the BBC whether Ukraine was starting to lose the war with Russia, Zelensky flatly rejected the suggestion
• But in the end-of-year news conference in Kyiv he acknowledged that Ukraine faced challenges, in terms of financial and military aid and getting agreement on further mobilisation of civilians to fight in the army
• Zelensky contrasted the problems Ukraine faced now, with the much more complex situation at the start of Russia's invasion in early 2022
• He said he was confident that allies such as the US and the European Union would not let Ukraine down and billions in aid would be approved shortly
• However, the Ukrainian president said a Donald Trump victory in next year's US elections would have a strong impact on the course of the war
• Zelensky also said Ukraine would produce a million drones next year and he was considering proposals to conscript 500,000 more soldiers
• But a sometimes tense and tetchy president was pressed over reports of corruption among officials and tensions with senior commanders, given a lack of success in this year's counter-offensive
• He refused to speculate over whether his commander-in-chief Valery Zaluzhny would be replaced, playing down reports of a rift between the pair
• Peace talks with Russia are not currently feasible, he also told reporters, adding that Ukraine would not change its aim to restore its pre-2014 borders as they are written into its constitution

Bernd Debusmann Jr
BBC News, Washington DC

On Capitol Hill in Washington DC, most Republican lawmakers are, theoretically, in favour of aiding Ukraine.

Yet, they've blocked Ukraine and sought to use it as leverage to achieve what they say they see as more pressing policy concerns: immigration reforms and border security.

Their opposition to Ukraine aid is largely a reflection of mounting concern over the Biden administration's handling of the border, which saw a record high 2.4 million migrants detained during the 2022 fiscal year.

The numbers have continued to swell, with about 10,800 migrants reportedly processed by Border Patrol on Monday alone.

I heard directly from a number of Republican lawmakers before and during President Zelensky's visit to Washington last week.

Almost to a man, they said they were horrified by the war in Ukraine, but that they believed the border was more urgent.

"They know what we want," South Carolina's Lindsey Graham told reporters. "I'm hopeful we can get the border part in a place where we can go for [an aid] bill."

Read more about Republican opposition to Ukraine aid here.

Zelensky seeks to strike a confident tonepublished at 18:18 Greenwich Mean Time 19 December 2023

18:18 GMT 19 December 2023

Jessica Parker
Reporting from Kyiv

President Zelensky sat, comfortably but assertively, on what appeared to be a black leather-clad chair – a small table to his right side.

He tried to show he’s open and ready to answer the nation's – and the world’s – questions.

His answer to my question – could Ukraine be on the cusp of starting to lose the war – was firm. No, he said.

It’s the answer you would expect, but he’s not alone in expressing this kind of determination.

Many people I meet will not countenance anything other than beating back their Russian invaders. On a range of topics, Zelensky sought to strike a confident tone – even on big, but stalled, packages of Western aid.

He is defiant. You’d expect him to be. It is the job of Ukraine’s war-time leader to rally the spirits of a nation that is well into its second year of Russia’s full-scale invasion.

Zelensky's marathon news conference has come to an end, after the Ukrainian president's two-hour stint at the microphone.

We'll bring you some analysis and a recap of what we learned shortly.

A Polish journalist has just mentioned seeing news that a civilian plane has taken off from Ukraine’s main airport, asking "what does it mean, Mr President. Will my mother be able to visit me in Kyiv soon?".

Zelensky seems to be caught unprepared when asked about this “technical” flight earlier on Tuesday from Kyiv’s Boryspil airport, having to check with his head of office, Andrii Yermak.

The president jokes Ukraine can arrange a safe train journey for the journalist's mother – even offering her a separate carriage.

“The opening of Boryspil will be a victory for Ukraine’s air defence,” he says, adding the flight is a "clear sign Ukraine has been winning" and a serious economic signal going forward.

"So please tell your mum, may she remain in good health, that we're working on her idea to come out here," he concludes.

There's another question now about the US, this time from European outlet Freedom TV, which focuses on how how much support there is for Ukraine in America.

Zelensky says his visits to the US - most recently this month - have increased the number of people who support helping Ukraine.

Work and conversations continue with the White House, he adds.

Zelensky is asked about Ukraine producing its own munitions, and whether production of drones could be improved.

He says he is "very positive" about drones - and producers should be "fast-reacting and modern".

He criticises Soviet-style red tape, mentioning a case of 20,000 drones being stuck in a warehouse and unable to get to the front line.

He promised a million drones would be produced in Ukraine next year.

A CNN Portugal journalist is up now, asking Zelensky if he's concerned about the prospect of Ukrainians "splitting up" both in their support for him and for the war.

The Ukrainian leader says unity is his country's biggest "weapon", and jokes that it's "homemade".

He says sticking together has helped Ukraine, and its people, stay strong since the war began.

On whether support for him as president is dwindling, Zelensky says he can only tell the reporter that it's been an "honour" to hold the role. He adds that if some people don't like how he's doing the job, "that's normal".

A question now on prisoners of war, including reports of civilians detained in Russia, and the mechanisms Ukraine is using to get them released. Up to 10,000 Ukrainians are believed to remain in Russian custody, according to human rights groups.

Zelensky agrees with the questioner that the process to secure their release has recently become more complicated, though he says it is "not ethical" to say what made it so.

He agrees with the journalist that the authorities are not communicating well enough with families of detainees - and promises to speak to those in charge of the process.

But he said that work is being done to return "a significant number of our people".

Image source, EPA

Asked about his understanding of what victory means for Ukraine, Zelensky says he has to "defend our country, according to our constitution".

He adds this means the whole of the country, including the occupied Crimean peninsula and areas of eastern and southern Ukraine - which were illegally annexed by Russia in 2014 and expanded in 2022.

Zelensky goes on to acknowledge people are divided over what victory means, in Ukraine and around the world.

But he says he is sceptical of the view that Ukraine is already victorious by surviving Russia's initial full-scale invasion, with further land to be regained at some possible point in the future.

Zelensky argues they must keep fighting because no-one will offer the country security guarantees or ensure Russia sticks to any possible ceasefire agreement.

"The further Russia withdraws, the weaker it is," he says.

A German journalist, from Der Spiegel, is up - he asks whether Zelensky believes Western leaders when they say they'll support Ukraine "until the very end".

The Ukrainian leader "expresses words of gratitude" for the support Germany has given so far - but says it remains to be seen whether allies will stick it out until the end.

He again thanks countries like Germany for helping Ukraine, which he says is "fighting for its life".

Image source, Ukraine Army

Zelensky is asked whether he plans to sack army commander Valery Zaluzhny, amid rumours that the two men have fallen out and that the senior soldier wants to stand for president.

He replies that both his job and Zaluzhny's are "great honours" and he "won't go into personalities".

"I have working relations with Zaluzhny," he adds.

"It's not about personal things, it's about responsibility before 40 million-plus people.

Zelensky says that he expects to continue doing his job.

It's the turn of the New York Times now, with the American newspaper's journalist asking about negotiations. He asks, specifically, when peace talks with Russia would be in Ukraine's interests.

“We have a peace formula,” Zelensky says, describing the last meeting on this in Malta as successful., external The next meeting is planned in Switzerland, he says.

He also says he wants the “global south” to get involved (countries seen as having a relatively lower level of economic development) - hoping that overall some 80 countries could participate.

“When all the countries of the world are united on this document, we may hand it over to Russia," Zelensky tells the reporter.

But he stresses that today "it’s not feasible", referencing Russia's ongoing willingness to "kill".

Zelensky is asked by a reporter from the AFP news agency whether Ukraine is considering changing its strategy given a lack of breakthroughs on the front line - for example, would he roll back on his pledge to restore Ukraine's 1991 borders or change military leadership.

On the first part, Zelensky says it cannot be changed as the borders are written into Ukraine's constitution.

The Crimean peninsula and large areas of southern and eastern Ukraine have been occupied by Russia since 2022, with Crimea and some eastern areas illegally annexed since 2014.

But Zelensky adds that battlefield tactics could be changed after "careful consideration" of the results of military operations this year.

He does not respond to a question about changing his top soldier Valery Zaluzhny, amid reports of tensions between the pair.

Asked whether Ukraine will join Nato, Zelensky says that it is not being invited, even though it would be "the most powerful option for us".

"This is nonsense," he says. "We have never been given any such proposal."

He says Russian President Vladimir Putin “doesn’t want peace”, so “let’s imagine if a part of Ukraine becomes a Nato member. Here we have high risks”.

"Will Nato countries fight for a bit of Ukraine? This is fantasy,"

Image source, EPA

A journalist from Poland is up next, asking Zelensky about Ukraine's relationship with the newly-installed, pro-Ukraine Polish government.

Zelensky begins by thanking Poland and its people for the support they've shown since Russian invaded Ukraine. "You've been with us since the beginning of war," he says, acknowledging that his words "probably aren't enough".

But he criticises as “wrong” the ongoing Polish truckers' blockade on the Polish-Ukraine border, saying Ukraine had no other way of exporting its grain and other agricultural produce.

“We’ve lost hundreds of millions of dollars,” Zelensky says, adding: “I’m defending the interests of my country in a war time."

Earlier this year, Ukraine - a major world grain producer - had been forced to start exporting its produce via land, following Russia’s withdrawal from a key Black Sea grain agreement. But Polish truckers are blocking the border in protest - saying EU permits should be reintroduced for Ukrainian lorry drivers.

Image source, EPA

A little while ago a journalist asked Zelensky about the Israel-Gaza war and its impact on Russia and Ukraine.

He says the crisis in the Middle East is drawing attention away from the war in Ukraine which has an impact on the support being offered by allies.

Zelensky adds the war in Gaza is a "tragedy and a challenge" for the region, but adds that the world must recognise the war is still going on in Ukraine.

He goes on to acknowledge Russia has achieved some diplomatic successes around the world, even if it has not achieved its battlefield aims.