(Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan for a quick settlement in Ukraine must not only stop the war but also ensure that there can no longer be any more Russian aggression, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in an interview broadcast on Sunday.
Zelenskiy said Ukraine wanted no repeat of the experience of peace accords and talks that failed to produce results in the years running up to Moscow’s February 2022 full-scale invasion. And that, he said, meant putting security guarantees in place.
“A frozen conflict will lead to more aggression again and again. Who then will win prizes and go down in history as the victor? No one. It will be an absolute defeat for everyone, both for us, as is important, and for Trump,” Zelenskiy told Britain’s ITV.
“He needs not just to end the war. He needs to act so that (Russian leader Vladimir) Putin has no chance to wage war on us again. This is the main thing and everyone should recognise that. That would be a victory,” Zelenskiy said.
Zelenskiy repeated his willingness to hold talks with Russia on ending the war provided that Ukraine’s Western allies — the United States and the European Union — were engaged.
“If I had an understanding that America and Europe will not abandon us and they will support us and provide security guarantees, I would be ready for any format for talks,” he said.
“If there are security guarantees, we can then speak of an end to the ‘hot phase’ of the war. You must understand we need to know just how this war is going to end. That we are all on the same side as America and Europe.”
The Ukrainian president said Putin did not want to end the war and “it is impossible to approach him through…half steps.”
“We need security guarantees, understandings so that whatever he may want or if whoever comes after him wants to kill Ukrainians or seize our land…they will get such a response.”
PRESIDENT RULES OUT WARTIME ELECTION
In his comments to ITV, Zelenskiy again ruled out holding elections in Ukraine until hostilities ceased, as that would endanger the country by removing key provisions of martial law. Putin says Zelenskiy has no legitimacy in any talks because he has remained in office beyond his mandate.
“We would have to suspend martial law and if we suspend martial law, we lose the army,” he said. “And, in principle, the Russians would be happy. It’s a matter of military capability, morale and similar that would be lost.”
Zelenskiy told Reuters last week that he wanted Ukraine to supply the United States with rare earths and other minerals in return for financially supporting its war effort. Ukrainian officials have also spoken to Trump’s special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, Keith Kellogg.
Trump said on Friday that he would probably meet Zelenskiy next week to discuss ending the war. The New York Post reported at the weekend that Trump said he had spoken to Putin by phone about ending the war, but Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he could neither confirm nor deny the report.
(Reporting by Ron Popeski; Editing by Mark Porter and Diane Craft)
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