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War in Ukraine/ Zelensky: I hope the US and Europe will engage in peace talks

2025-01-25 16:39:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

War in Ukraine/ Zelensky: I hope the US and Europe will engage in peace talks

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday he hopes the United States and Europe will be involved in potential talks to end his country's war with Russia.

Speaking at a press conference alongside Moldovan President Maia Sandu, Zelensky said Ukraine must also be included in any talks to end the war in order for the negotiations to have a meaningful impact.

"Regarding what the composition of the talks will be: I very much hope that Ukraine will be there, and America, Europe and the Russians," Zelensky said.

Later, he clarified that no framework for negotiations has yet been established.

"Yes, I would very much like Europe to participate, because we will be members of the European Union," he added,

Zelensky said he believes US President Donald Trump can end the war, adding that he can only do so if he includes Ukraine in the talks.

"Otherwise, it doesn't get the job done. Because Russia doesn't want the war to end, while Ukraine wants to end it ," he added.

During last year's presidential campaign, Trump repeatedly said he would end the war quickly, and repeated that just days before taking office. Now, he says it could take months.

In recent days, Trump has made his harshest comments to date toward Russian President Vladimir Putin, whom he has often spoken of with admiration.

On January 22, Trump, addressing his Russian counterpart by name, warned Moscow that it would face "high" new tariffs, taxes, and sanctions if it did not quickly stop its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

He also suggested he would impose additional sanctions on Russia if Putin did not agree to peace talks to end the war.

On Friday, Putin said he wants to meet with Trump to talk about Ukraine. He cited a 2022 decree by Zelensky that bars talks with Putin as an obstacle to negotiations.

Zelensky said at the conference on Saturday that he made this stop to prevent Putin from forming other channels of communication with interlocutors in Ukraine.

Zelensky added that Russia repeatedly tried to do so before he signed the decree.

The war in Ukraine began in 2014 with the Kremlin's illegal invasion and annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and escalated with its full occupation by Russia in February 2022./REL