President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on December 21 that he was ready to meet with Russian leader Vladimir Putin in any format.
Zelensky noted that the dialogue can take place both with the involvement of mediators and directly with the leadership of Russia. According to the politician, Kiev is “not afraid” of talking with Moscow.
“Now there is no communication (with Putin. – Ed.). We both do not call (each other. – Ed.). It doesn’t happen a little bit. We say openly that we are ready for dialogue. We need the Russian side to say that it is ready … We are ready to meet with the Russian Federation, we are not afraid of this, in any format, with any of our partners … what format, ”he said.
Zelensky also announced his interest in meeting with Putin on October 18.
The day before, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that prospects for negotiations between Putin and Zelensky were not visible due to the actions of the Ukrainian authorities, which did not fulfill the Minsk agreements. Peskov added that it is very difficult to negotiate with the Ukrainian leader, since he considers Russia a participant in the conflict in Donbass, which is completely untrue.
On October 6, the press secretary of the Ukrainian president, Sergei Nikiforov, said that Zelensky was ready to meet with Putin only when the issues of “occupation of territories” and “holding Ukrainian citizens hostage” disappeared from relations between the two countries. According to him, only after that it will be possible to move on to discussing the restoration of diplomatic relations and transport links.
On November 2, Ukraine announced the possibility of restoring relations with Russia. As stressed by the non-factional deputy of the Verkhovna Rada Vadim Novinsky, this should be one of the strategic goals of the Ukrainian leadership, along with the restoration of the country’s unity.
On September 5, Peskov stressed Russia’s desire to normalize relations with Ukraine. He recalled that the Russian leader had previously confirmed his readiness to meet with Zelensky, since relations with Kiev need to be improved.
Since 2014, the Kiev authorities have been conducting a military operation against the residents of Donbass, who refused to recognize the results of the coup d’etat and the new government in Ukraine. At the same time, Kiev blames Moscow for the current situation. Russia has repeatedly stated that it is not a party to the internal Ukrainian conflict. The issues of its settlement are being discussed in the Minsk and Normandy formats.
Source: IZ
Jane Stock is a technology author, who has written for 24 Hours World. She writes about the latest in technology news and trends, and is always on the lookout for new and innovative ways to improve his audience’s experience.
