All sides should participate in the negotiations on ending the war in Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said in an interview with AP. He emphasized that it was unacceptable to exclude Kyiv from this process. Thus Zelenskyy reacted to the words of US President Donald Trump that he is already in “very serious” negotiations with Russia on the settlement of the largest armed conflict in Europe since World War II. “They can have their own relations, but to talk about Ukraine without us is dangerous for everyone,” Zelenskyy said.
At the same time, he believes that the dialog with Russia should be preceded by his personal meeting with Trump. “This is important, and this, by the way, is what all of Europe wants,” said Zelenskyy, adding that after it will be possible “to move to some format of negotiations with the Russians.” He said that so far Ukraine has been in contact with the Trump administration only “at a general level,” but that face-to-face meetings are planned in the near future to discuss the agreements in detail. “We need to work more on this,” Zelenskyy admitted. He also said that he would like to see not only the United States and Russia, but also the European Union at the negotiating table. From his point of view, this would be “fair and effective.”
At the same time, Zelenskyy expressed confidence that Russia is not interested in real negotiations to end the war or concessions, which the Kremlin views as a defeat, especially given its military superiority on the battlefield. In his opinion, Trump can only force Putin to negotiate by threatening sanctions against Russia’s energy and banking systems, as well as by continuing to support the Ukrainian military.
