Territorial issues can be discussed only by leaders of Ukraine and Russia, - Zelenskyy
The issue of territorial concessions—which Moscow has made contingent on a cessation of hostilities and security guarantees—can be addressed only at the highest level: during face-to-face talks between the Ukrainian president and the Russian dictator.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made this statement during a conversation with journalists, according to Censor.NET, citing Ukrinform.
A red line for Ukraine
"Russia links the issue of territories to the end of the war, security guarantees, and the possible forms these guarantees might take. This is because security guarantees apply to states and to the territories controlled by one side or the other. Our partners could not delve deeply into the issue of territories because they know that this is a red line for us. This issue can only be discussed by the leaders of the warring states, and only at their level. No one else has the authority to do so," he said.
U.S. proposals: demilitarized zones in Donbas, on the Kinburn Spit, and the fate of the ZNPP
Zelenskyy noted that the U.S. had previously proposed establishing demilitarized zones in Donbas and on the Kinburn Spit.
"Ever since the ‘28-point plan,’ one of the alternative proposals from the U.S. side has been demilitarized zones. After that, this was discussed in various ways in different documents. What will happen to the ZNPP? What will happen to certain territories that the Americans proposed resolving through ‘land swaps’? Then there was the issue of Donbas; there was a proposal to create a buffer zone or a demilitarized zone on both sides of the contact line. As a compromise, we were ready to discuss this. Also, the Kinburn Spit: they proposed making one part demilitarized, which could be under Ukraine’s control," he said.
Zelenskyy noted that all these territorial issues can be addressed in various formats, which is exactly what happened.
"When the ‘diesel deal’ issue arose, our teams discussed all the issues, and the Americans again raised the issue of demilitarized zones. I saw this in some documents held by the Americans. For now, we’re not moving forward on this issue," he noted.
The head of state stated that Ukraine is ready to discuss the territorial issue, which Russia constantly raises and includes on the negotiation agenda; however, he emphasized that this requires meetings at the appropriate level, rather than preliminary talks or the exchange of draft documents.
