Zelenskyy open to peace talks — on Ukraine’s terms
KYIV, Ukraine — Ukraine’s president has suggested he’s open to peace talks with Russia, softening his earlier refusal to negotiate with Moscow while President Vladimir Putin is in power — while sticking to Kyiv’s demands.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s appeal to the international community late Monday to “force Russia into real peace talks” reflected a change in rhetoric for a man who signed a decree in late September stating “the impossibility of holding talks” with Putin. But since his preconditions appear to be non-starters for Moscow, it’s hard to see how Zelenskyy’s latest comments would advance any talks.
Zelenskyy reiterated that his conditions for dialogue were the return of all of Ukraine’s occupied lands, compensation for damage caused by the war and the prosecution of war crimes.
Western weapons and aid have been key to Ukraine’s ability to fight off Russia’s invasion, which some initially expected would tear through the country with relative ease. But U.S. midterm elections Tuesday will define the amount and the shape of Washington’s future political and financial support.
A growing conservative opposition in the U.S. Congress could complicate strong bipartisan support next year if Republicans take control of the House.
Recent comments from Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, saying lawmakers would not cut a “blank check” to Ukraine have more clearly reflected the party’s growing skepticism about the cost of support for Kyiv.
Russia and Ukraine held several rounds of talks in Belarus and Turkey early on in the war, which is now nearing its ninemonth mark, and Zelenskyy initially even called for a personal meeting with Putin — something the Kremlin has brushed off.
The talks stalled after the last meeting of the delegations, held in Istanbul in March, yielded no results.
Zelenskyy said Monday that Kyiv has “repeatedly proposed (talks) and to which we always received crazy Russian responses with new terrorist attacks, shelling or blackmail.”
Russia resumed calls for talks after Ukraine’s successful counteroffensive in the east and the south of the country began in September — but ever since Putin illegally annexed four regions of Ukraine, Kyiv has rejected the possibility of negotiating with him.