(Reuters) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday he and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte discussed the importance of security guarantees for Kyiv in any discussion of a settlement of the nearly three-year-old war against Russia.
Writing on X, Zelenskiy said he and Rutte examined contacts with Ukraine’s partners and “coordinated our next steps”.
“We cannot allow Putin to deceive everyone again,” Zelenskiy wrote. “Before any potential negotiations, all partners must clearly understand that strong security guarantees are the priority for lasting peace.”
Russia and the United States on Tuesday held their first talks on how to end the war in Ukraine. Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier on Wednesday said it would take time to set up a summit with U.S. President Donald Trump.
Comments from the two men follow remarks by Trump branding Zelenskiy a “dictator without elections” for Ukraine’s rejection of a wartime election and his suggestion that Ukraine was responsible for Russia’s 2022 invasion.
Rutte, also writing on X, said he had had a “good exchange” with the U.S. envoy for Russia and Ukraine, Keith Kellogg, who is now visiting Ukraine.
Zelenskiy, referring to those discussions, said the message to be conveyed focused on “achieving guaranteed peace, not just a temporary ceasefire. There must be confidence that in a few months or years, Putin won’t return with his war.”
(Reporting by Ron Popeski; Editing by Leslie Adler)
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