US is not trying to impose peace terms on Ukraine, - Witkoff
The United States is not trying to impose peace terms on Ukraine.
This was stated by US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff during his speech at the YES Meeting event organised by the Victor Pinchuk Foundation to mark the anniversary of Russia's invasion.
He reminded that Washington is not a party to the conflict and sees itself only as a mediator.
"So we never approached the Ukrainians, their leadership, and tried to impose a point of view. We listened carefully to the Ukrainian leadership about what they can do, what they cannot do, what political space exists to resolve the issue of territory..." Witkoff said.
He added that the restoration of communication channels between Kyiv and Moscow is an achievement.
Progress in negotiations
"We have made more progress in the last eight or nine weeks than we have in the last four years," the US special envoy emphasised.
According to him, the goal of the negotiations is to continue the dialogue between the parties and seek diplomatic solutions to the conflict, while maintaining Ukraine's role as the main participant in the process.
Territorial issues
Earlier, Steve Witkoff said he believed in a potential meeting between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, which should cover, in particular, the issues of territories and security guarantees.
"The meeting between the presidents would cover security guarantees, but perhaps most importantly, it would cover territory. And so we deeply believe in this, and if it can happen, and I hope it will happen, then perhaps we will end up with some kind of trilateral agreement," he said.
Trump's special envoy added that it is too early to talk about a trilateral agreement, but the delegations continue to work fruitfully.
What preceded this?
- Earlier, Trump's special envoy Witkoff said that a summit between Zelenskyy and Putin could take place in three weeks. Trump may join.
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy believes that holding a trilateral meeting is important.
- He also said that issues regarding territories that cannot be agreed upon at the technical group level during peace talks need to be resolved in a personal meeting with Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin.
