Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has called on his Western allies to "urgently reinforce Ukraine on the battlefield" at a time when Kiev's forces have been ceding territory to the Russian army for months, Agence France-Presse reported, BTA reported.
"The main thing that will unite us" at the meeting with Europeans on Thursday in Brussels, is "to determine how to urgently strengthen Ukraine on the battlefield, politically and geopolitically", Zelensky said at a joint news conference with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in the Ukrainian city of Lviv.
In response to a question about the possible deployment of foreign peacekeeping forces on Ukrainian territory, Zelensky said that "everyone who will be there has the right to raise this or that issue", Reuters notes.
The Ukrainian president added that the main topic would be the urgent reinforcement of Ukraine.
The Ukrainian president, whose country has been fighting to repel a Russian invasion for nearly three years, also called on Europeans to unite with Kiev in the face of newly elected US President Donald Trump, who is due to take office in January. His return to the White House has Ukraine and its allies worried about a reduction in crucial US military aid and pressure for compromises favorable to Russia in any peace talks.
"It is very important that these signals are sent to the US and that the new administration also hears that we are all united in our desire for a just peace in Ukraine", Zelensky stressed.
For his part, Donald Tusk assured that his country would "guarantee" that any peace talks would not lead to "unfair decisions". "There is no reason why Ukraine should give in" to Moscow in the event of such talks, he assured. "Ukraine is a victim of an attack. Moscow is the one that must rethink (its actions)", the Polish prime minister stressed.