In an interview with Bloomberg, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky commented on the possibility of direct negotiations with Vladimir Putin. Zelensky said that such a meeting is possible only "if Ukraine gets a chance to end this war with a just peace for Ukraine, for Ukrainians".
"Of course, I am the president of Ukraine: I will do everything to bring this closer", Zelensky said. — And if there is a fair agreement, if President Trump, and I believe in this, can guarantee us this strong and irreversible security for Ukraine, then we will continue on the diplomatic path. I understand that without Russia, it is impossible to end this war diplomatically.
In the fall of 2022, after Russia passed laws annexing four Ukrainian regions, the Ukrainian authorities passed laws that make direct negotiations with Vladimir Putin impossible.
However, Zelensky has admitted in the past that such talks can be held with the participation of mediators.
Donald Trump said earlier this week that the conflict in Ukraine is "destroying" Russia and announced that he plans to talk to Putin soon.
Speaking about Russia and the war, Trump warned yesterday: "If we don't make a "deal" and soon, I have no choice but to impose high levels of taxes, duties and sanctions on everything sold from Russia to the United States and various other countries involved.
Putin's spokesman said he saw nothing new in US President Donald Trump's threat to hit Russia with new sanctions and duties if it does not agree to end the war in Ukraine.
"We do not see any particularly new elements here," Peskov noted. "He likes these methods, or at least he liked them during his first presidency." Moscow is closely monitoring all of Trump's statements, the Kremlin spokesman added.
"We are carefully considering all the nuances. We remain ready for dialogue, President Putin has repeatedly spoken about this - for an equal dialogue, for a mutually respectful dialogue," he stressed.
In turn, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte praised Trump's warning to Russia.
"I was extremely pleased with Trump's position to impose more sanctions on Russia. We know that the Russian economy is doing terribly badly and sanctions will help," he noted at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.