Zelenskyy says Kyiv ready for peace talks, but will not cede territory
Ukraine is prepared to engage in peace talks but will not withdraw troops from additional territory, as Russia has demanded, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday.
Zelenskyy told reporters he is willing to hold talks anywhere except on Russian or Belarusian territory, emphasizing that Ukraine will approach diplomacy from its current position. “We will not take any steps back and leave one part of our state or another,” he said, News.Az reports, citing Reuters.
Plans for a summit in Budapest between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russia’s Vladimir Putin were postponed after Moscow insisted that Ukraine cede more territory as a condition for a ceasefire. Trump has publicly supported Ukraine’s call for an immediate ceasefire along current frontlines.
Zelenskyy also addressed potential venues for talks, including Hungary, despite concerns over some positions of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, whom he said “blocks everything for Ukraine.” “If there will be results, then God bless — let the talks take place anywhere. It almost doesn’t matter, just not in Russia, of course, and definitely not in Belarus,” he added.
The Ukrainian president urged U.S. lawmakers to impose stricter sanctions on Russia following Trump’s actions against Moscow’s two largest oil companies. Zelenskyy also highlighted the need for stable financing from European allies for the next two to three years to support Ukraine amid ongoing conflict.
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