Zelenskyy to Trump: For peace, pressure should be put not on me, but on Putin
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wants US leader Donald Trump to increase pressure on Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, and stop pressuring him to reach a settlement to the war.
As reported by Censor.NET, the head of state said this in an interview with Welt and Politico.
On negotiations and the role of the United States
The Ukrainian leader said that his people were "tired", but morale remained high and that he was not ready to accept Russia’s ultimatums on territorial concessions. In the interview, Zelenskyy made it clear that Trump’s influence would still be key.
"We need negotiations. We support them. We do not trust Russia, but I think and believe that the Americans really want to finish this war. I hope that they will help us, but we need more pressure on Russia, not on me," he stressed.
Guarantees from the United States
- His comments came a week after Trump expressed renewed frustration with Zelenskyy, having earlier said that Ukraine’s leader should "get on the ball" and make a deal.
Talks with Trump’s envoys in December showed that the United States was ready to provide Ukraine with some form of security guarantees that would form the basis of any peace deal. However, according to Zelenskyy, there are still no details on what exactly those promises will look like.
"Let’s be honest. This is very important for us, but we do not have a clear answer," he said.
"President Trump told me, ‘Do you trust that our security guarantees can be stronger than NATO?’ I said, ‘Yes, it depends on you for today. It depends on you, Mr. President. God bless if we will have stronger security guarantees than NATO. But what will be after you? And what will be after me?" Zelenskyy added.
