>>> WE HAVE THIS BREAKING NEWS, NEW WORD FROM PRESIDENT VOLODYMYR ZELENSKYY ABOUT THE DIRE MILITARY SITUATION IN UKRAINE, ZELENSKYY SAYING HE HOPES TO PRESENT A BLUEPRINT FOR PRIESTS TO RUSSIA -- THIS SPRING. THIS -- TWO YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF RUSSIA'S INVASION. ZELENSKYY ALSO SAYING THAT 31,000 UKRAINIAN SOLDIERS HAVE BEEN KILLED IN THIS WAR, GIVING THE FIRST OFFICIAL FIGURE FOR MORE THAN A YEAR. JOINING ME NOW OUR NBC NEWS CHIEF FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT RICHARD ENGEL, AND FORMER FBI SPECIAL AGENT AND MSNBC NATIONAL SECURITY ANALYST CLINT WATTS, GENTLEMEN I'M GLAD TO HAVE YOU BOTH WITH ME HERE. RICHARD, WHAT CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE PEACE PLAN THAT ZELENSKYY PLANS TO PROPOSE. WHAT IS HIS MESSAGE TO THE WORLD? AS THIS WORLD WAR IS ENTERING ITS THIRD YEAR? >> IT IS, AND RIGHT NOW THERE IS A BIG CONFERENCE GOING ON HERE IN KYIV THAT THE GOVERNMENT HAS ORGANIZED. THEY'RE USING THIS MOMENT AS A RESTART, AS A REBOOT, THEY'RE CALLING IT. YESTERDAY PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY SPOKE TO THE UKRAINIAN PEOPLE. HE WAS TELLING THEM THAT THEY NEED TO STAY STRONG, THEY NEED TO KEEP FIGHTING THEY CAN'T GIVE HIM EVEN THOUGH IT'S DIFFICULT, HE SPOKE ABOUT THE MADE TO GET THE SOLDIERS MORE TIME OFF AND TO GIVE THEM MORE CONSISTENT ROTATION. TODAY HE WAS REALLY ADDRESSING THE FOREIGN MEDIA, TRYING TO TALK TO THE WORLD BECAUSE THEY REALIZE HERE THAT UKRAINE HAS A CRISIS. THEY'RE STARTING TO LOSE TERRITORY THERE LOW ON AMMUNITION, SUPPLIES FROM THE UNITED STATES, WEAPONS, AND AMMUNITION ARE BOTH HELD UP IN CONGRESS. SO ZELENSKYY'S MESSAGE WAS WE ARE GOING TO TRY AND USE THIS MOMENT TO OUTLINE OUR VISION FOR THE FUTURE. PART OF THAT VISION, ALEX, WAS THIS PEACE PLAN THAT HE TALKED ABOUT. HE SAYS THAT THIS IS A TWO-STEP PROCESS IN WHICH STARTING IN THE SPRING IN GENEVA THEY WOULD BE A GATHERING OF UKRAINIAN OFFICIALS. RUSSIA WOULDN'T BE INVITED TO THIS FIRST PEACE SUMMIT AS THEY'RE DESCRIBING IT HERE IN GENEVA IN THE SPRING IT WOULD BE AN INTERNAL MEETING BETWEEN UKRAINE AND ITS ALLIES TO EFFECTIVELY COME UP WITH TERMS. THEY WOULD BREAK IT DOWN INTO COMMITTEES THEY WOULD PRESENT EACH ARGUMENT AS THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE IT RESOLVED, THEN THEY WOULD PRESENT THIS DOCUMENT COLLECTIVELY TO THE RUSSIAN SIDE, THE RUSSIAN SIDE WOULD STUDY IT AND MEET FOR A SECOND PEACE SUMMIT TO COME UP WITH JUST TERMS STAND THE WAR. A VERY COMPLICATED PROCESS. I ASKED HIM, HE ALSO JUST GAVE ONE MORE THING -- PRESIDENT ZELENSKYY ALSO JUST GAVE A PRESS CONFERENCE, AND I ASKED HIM ABOUT THE DIFFICULT SITUATION THAT UKRAINE FINDS ITSELF IN RIGHT NOW. >> MY COLLEAGUE FROM ITALY, I JUST RETURNED FROM THE FRONT LINE AREA, I WASN'T -- THINGS LOOK VERY DIFFICULT RIGHT NOW. BY YOUR OWN ACCOUNT, YOU ARE OUTGUNNED, 7 TO 1. THE FRONT LINES AREN'T REALLY MOVING WHERE THEY HAVE MOVED IT HAS BEEN IN RUSSIA'S FAVOR. SO MY QUESTION IS, IS THIS THE WEAKEST TIME THAT UKRAINE HAS FOUND ITSELF IN SINCE THAT INITIAL PHASE OF THE WAR WHEN RUSSIAN TROOPS WERE LITERALLY AT THE GATES OF KYIV. >> REPORTER: >> TRANSLATOR: IT'S A COMPLICATED QUESTION. I DON'T THINK THIS IS THE WEAKEST POINT. IT WAS A SHOCKING MOMENTS, ON THE 24TH OF FEBRUARY, TWO YEARS AGO. NOW IT'S THE VERY STRONG MOMENT FOR OUR UNITY. IF WE GET DIVIDED WITH OUR PARTNERS AND INSIDE UKRAINE, IN THE BEST CASE THAT WOULD BE THE WEAKEST POINT. AT THIS POINT, AT THIS MOMENT WE HAVEN'T HAD SOMETHING LIKE THAT. WE UNDERSTAND THERE WAS FOCUS OF EVERYONE TO SAY THAT, AND WE UNDERSTAND HOW IMPORTANT IT WAS FOR JOURNALISTS TO PAY ATTENTION TO THIS TRAGEDY, BUT STILL THE FOCUS OF THE LEADERS WAS ALSO DIVERTED FROM UKRAINE AND THE ATTENTION WAS DIVERTED AND AT CERTAIN REGIONS OF THE WORLD STARTING TO FORGET THAT WE HAVE A FULL SCALE WAR. I THINK THAT WAS THE MOST DIFFICULT PERIOD >> IT IS EXTRAORDINARY THAT HE DOESN'T CALL RIGHT NOW THE MOST DIRE MOMENT BECAUSE I JUXTAPOSE THAT TO SOMETHING THAT I FOUND LITERALLY HEARTBREAKING WHEN I WATCHED A PIECE OF YOUR GESTURE DAY THAT WE ARABS WHEN YOU HAD UKRAINIAN TROOPS JUST WRITING ON WALLS, A WHITE WALL THAT YOU
