Welcome to Hard Talk on the BBC World Service with me, Stephen Saker.

My guest today is a former Ukrainian Prime Minister, Arseni Yatsenuk, who, like all his compatriots,

is now immersed in the reality of a conflict which looks like a war for national survival.

Eleven days into the Russian invasion, and both Moscow and Kiev claim that their strategy will prevail.

Clearly, both cannot be right. Maybe neither is right. Such is the uncertainty about Ukraine's

future, both short and long term. What is already certain is the terrible cost of this conflict.

Russia's multi-front assault has seen population centres bombarded, civilians killed, and

1.5 million Ukrainians turned into refugees in neighbouring countries. But Russian hopes of a quick, decisive victory and the

installation of a pro-Moscow regime have been thwarted. Kiev remains defiant and capable of

organizing effective military resistance. But for how long? Outnumbered and outgunned, how realistic

is the Ukrainian insistence that this

is a war they will win? Well, Arsini Yatsenuk joins me now from Ukraine. Welcome to Hard Talk.

Thanks for having me. It is a pleasure to have you on the show. We all see, Mr. Yatsenio, that the cost of this war to

Ukraine is already terribly high. Is it sustainable? We are fighting for our freedom. We are fighting for

our liberties. We are fighting for our homeland. And what is happening right now in Ukraine

is a tragedy. It is a drama on the one hand. On the other hand, this is an unbelievable courage

of Ukrainian military, men and women in the uniform and the very strong unity of Ukrainian nation and of Ukrainian people.

So we will prevail and we will survive.

But I come back to the practical reality, which is day after day, your country's capacity is

being degraded. Your towns and cities are being bombarded. The civilian casualty toll is mounting.

Your military is being sorely stretched. So it comes back to how sustainable is this for Ukraine?

Look, a killer and a Nazi-style President Putin, he actually anticipated to take over Ukraine in a few days

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