Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Tuesday (27) that the war with Russia would end in dialogue, but that Kiev had to be in a strong position and that he would present a plan to US President Joe Biden and his two potential successors.
The Ukrainian leader, in a news conference, said that Kiev’s three-week-old incursion into Russia’s Kursk region was part of that plan, but that it also includes other measures on the economic and diplomatic fronts.
“The whole point of this plan is to force Russia to end the war. And I want that very much – [que seja] fair for Ukraine,” he told reporters in Kiev about the war sparked by Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
He did not give further details on the next steps, but said he would also discuss the plan with Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris and likely Republican Donald Trump, the two candidates in the US presidential election.
Zelensky said he hoped to travel to the United States in September to attend the UN General Assembly in New York and was preparing to meet with Biden.
His comments indicate that he sees the main potential forum for negotiations as a follow-up international peace summit, at which Ukraine has said it wants Russia to have representatives.
The first summit to promote Kiev’s peace vision, held in Switzerland in June, conspicuously excluded Russia while attracting dozens of delegations, but not from China, the world’s second-largest economy, despite Kiev’s drive to win over the Global South.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on August 19 that negotiations were out of the question after Ukraine launched a major invasion of Russia’s Kursk region on August 6.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was in Kiev last week, spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday and said he supported a swift and peaceful resolution to the conflict in Ukraine.
“No compromises with Putin”
Zelensky has been adamant that Russia wants to dictate terms to Ukraine in any war settlement, something Kiev sees as unacceptable.
Putin said any deal must begin with Ukraine accepting the “reality on the ground,” which would leave Russia in possession of substantial chunks of four Ukrainian regions as well as Crimea.
Ukraine now says it controls more than 1,200 square kilometers of Russia’s Kursk region.
“There can be no concessions with Putin, the dialogue today is, in principle, empty and meaningless because he does not want to end the war diplomatically,” Zelensky said at the press conference.
He said the offensive in the Kursk region had reduced the number of governments around the world calling on Ukraine to make concessions to Russia to end the war and give up swathes of territory.
On the battlefield, Zelensky mocked Putin, who he said was prioritizing the capture of Ukrainian lands over defending Russia’s own territory.
He pointed to the Kursk region, where Ukraine has claimed the capture of 100 settlements, while Russian forces continue to advance in the eastern Donetsk region.
The Ukrainian leader also said Kiev continues to make progress in domestic arms production and that it has carried out its first test of a domestically produced ballistic missile.
This content was originally published in Zelensky will present plan to Biden to end war in Ukraine on the CNN Brasil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
