Zelenskyy answers whether he would sit down for talks with Putin
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine (Getty Images)
Ukraine is open to direct talks with Russia at the leaders' level. The key issue should be the concrete outcome of the meeting, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview with CBC News.
Zelenskyy was asked whether he was personally ready to sit down at the negotiating table with Putin. According to the president, the prospect of such a meeting does not evoke positive emotions for him, but he is willing to consider it if it has practical value.
"Normal. No, it's not my wish. It's not the best day of my life. Better to sit with my family," he said.
At the same time, Zelenskyy emphasized that he considers Putin an enemy of Ukraine and said he knows his true goal.
"I know his real goal. I know that this person wants to occupy us (Ukraine - ed.) totally, and he will, if we will not be so strong, and if the world will be tired, or if I will not have security guarantees," he said.
According to Zelenskyy, security guarantees are one of the key issues in this context. For him, they mean having confidence that Russia will not be able to launch another occupation of Ukraine.
Thus, the president did not rule out the possibility of a direct conversation with Putin. At the same time, Zelenskyy made it clear that such a meeting must be tied to a concrete outcome and real security guarantees for Ukraine.
Putin's spokesperson Dmitry Peskov recently said that the Kremlin is counting on a new trilateral meeting involving Ukraine and the US. According to him, the possibility of holding such talks has already been discussed with American representatives.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov also said that Moscow is ready for a new round of talks on Ukraine. He claimed that Russia "has something to say" and that it has never rejected dialogue.
