Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said today that he had discussed with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte the importance of providing guarantees for his country's security in the context of consultations on a possible peace agreement with Russia. This was reported by "Reuters" and "Ukrinform", BTA reports.
In a post on the social network "X", Zelensky indicated that he and Rutte had reviewed contacts with Ukrainian partners and had "coordinated their next steps". "We cannot allow Putin to deceive everyone again," he stressed. "All partners must clearly understand that before any possible negotiations, strong security guarantees are a top priority for achieving lasting peace," the Ukrainian leader added.
For his part, the NATO Secretary General said in "X" that he had informed Zelensky about the "good exchange" that the alliance had with the US Special Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg regarding the upcoming peace talks.
Rutte noted that they had also discussed with the Ukrainian president the extraordinary European summit in Paris, as well as ways in which EU partners can contribute to achieving lasting peace and keeping Ukraine strong at all times.
Yesterday, the US and Russia held their first talks on the possibilities of ending the war in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin said today that it would take time to organize a summit with US President Donald Trump.
Rutte and Zelensky's comments come as Trump called the Ukrainian president a "dictator" who he said was not elected to office through democratic elections, "Reuters" notes.