Ukraine pushes for immediate ceasefire in London talks
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky calls for an immediate ceasefire with Russia. Talks are underway in London with representatives from the United Kingdom, France, and Germany.
President Zelensky has appealed for a ceasefire with Russia, communicating his stance on Wednesday through the Telegram messaging app.
"In Ukraine, we insist on an immediate, full, and unconditional ceasefire," Zelensky stated adding that "stopping the killings is the number one task".
Talks in London
Meetings are taking place in London involving a Ukrainian delegation and representatives from the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, with the goal of resolving the conflict with Moscow.
The meetings include Ukraine's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Andriy Sybiha, and Minister of Defense, Rustem Umerov. On the British side, David Lammy and John Healey are in attendance. As highlighted by Andriy Yermak, head of the President of Ukraine's office, the objective of the talks is to secure a full and unconditional ceasefire as an initial step toward achieving lasting peace.
Lowered rank of talks
According to information provided by Sky News, the status of the talks has been downgraded due to Kyiv's refusal to recognize Crimea as Russian territory. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is not attending the meeting, and the ranks of the delegations from France and Germany have also been lowered.
Crimea at the center of international negotiations
The administration of former U.S. President Donald Trump considered recognizing Crimea as Russian territory as part of a potential agreement to end the war in Ukraine. This information was reported by the American portal Semafor, citing sources familiar with the matter. Such a stance by Washington would represent a notable concession to Russian President Vladimir Putin, who has long claimed Crimea as part of Russia.
According to Semafor, officials from the Trump administration also discussed the possibility of persuading the United Nations to recognize Crimea as Russian territory. The White House did not comment on these reports, and press secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed only that Trump's team had discussed potential territorial concessions by Kyiv with Ukrainian authorities, but no specifics were provided.
