Zelensky open to talks with Putin if Trump strengthens Ukraine
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky expressed his willingness to engage in direct negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin to end the war, setting one condition.
"If he [Trump] can guarantee this strong and irreversible security for Ukraine, we will move along this diplomatic path. I understand that without Russia, it is impossible to end this war diplomatically," Zelensky stated in an interview with Bloomberg.
He mentioned that long-term security guarantees for Ukraine could involve NATO membership or the presence of Western peacekeeping forces in the country. "Any potential peacekeeping force, if it were to be deployed, must include the participation of US troops," Zelensky emphasized.
Warns against Russia and Putin's promises
Zelensky also cautioned against a scenario where, after a temporary truce, Putin might take the opportunity to rearm and re-equip his military forces, resuming military actions.
Zelensky warned that the most dangerous thing—not just for President Trump, but for himself and all Ukrainians—was whether Trump could secure the agreement in a manner that would prevent Putin from returning. He cautioned that Putin would make grand promises to President Trump and go to great lengths simply to secure the meeting. The President of Ukraine added that the resolution of the war should be a victory for Trump, not Putin.
Previously, Zelensky had considered negotiations with Putin but only on the condition that Russia agrees to discuss a peace plan that Kyiv will approve alongside its partners at a "second peace summit"—an event planned for the end of 2024, which never occurred.
Are negotiations with Russia coming?
Putin, on his part, remarked that he would not engage in talks with Zelensky because Zelensky "banned negotiations with Russia," referring to a decree by the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine (NSDC) that prohibited personal negotiations with Putin. Zelensky implemented this decree in October 2022. Following this, the Kremlin stated that Kyiv could return to a "peaceful" trajectory if the Ukrainian president lifts this ban.
In June 2024, Putin outlined the conditions for commencing peace negotiations. These included the withdrawal of the Ukrainian army from the unoccupied parts of the Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson regions, an official renunciation by Kyiv of joining NATO, affirmation of Ukraine's nuclear-free status, "demilitarization" and "denazification" of the country, as well as the lifting of all Western sanctions against Russia. President Zelensky described these conditions as yet another ultimatum.
