Ukraine proposes new peace talks amid stalemate
Ukraine has proposed a new round of talks with Russia next week, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced.
Peace negotiations have remained at a stalemate after an inconclusive meeting in June, AFP reported.
Two successive meetings in Istanbul between Russian and Ukrainian delegations made no progress on a ceasefire, with the parties only agreeing on exchanges of prisoners of war and the bodies of slain soldiers.
The Ukrainian president once again expressed his readiness to negotiate directly with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin.
"Dialogue with the Russian side regarding prisoner exchanges is underway – we continue to implement the agreements reached during the previous Istanbul meeting. Our team is currently working on another exchange. The Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, Rustem Umerov, reported that he proposed another meeting with the Russian side for next week. The pace of negotiations must be accelerated. Everything must be done to achieve a ceasefire. And the Russian side must stop avoiding decisions. Prisoner exchanges, the return of children, an end to the killing. And a meeting at the leadership level is necessary to truly ensure peace – a truly lasting one. Ukraine is ready for such a meeting," the Ukrainian president declared.
During the last negotiations in June, Russia again presented maximalist conditions, including Ukraine's cession of four regions: Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhya, partially controlled by Moscow, and the renunciation of all Western military aid.
Ukraine rejected what it called an "ultimatum" and also expressed doubt about Moscow's willingness to negotiate a ceasefire.
The Kremlin nevertheless stated in early July that it was ready to continue negotiations with Ukraine, after then-President Donald Trump had given it 50 days to negotiate peace, threatening sanctions and announcing on the same day the resumption of arms deliveries to Kyiv, funded by NATO countries.
Translation by Iurie Tataru
