Zelensky hints at possibility of talks
UKRAINE’S president has hinted at the possibility of peace talks with Russia, in a shift from his earlier refusal to negotiate with President Vladimir Putin.
Volodymyr Zelensky urged the international community to “force Russia into real peace talks” and listed his usual conditions for dialogue – the return of all of Ukraine’s occupied lands, compensation for damage caused by the war and the prosecution of war crimes.
That is a change in rhetoric at least from a man who signed a decree in late September stating “the impossibility of holding talks” with Mr Putin. However, since his preconditions appear to be non-starters for Moscow, it is hard to see how any talks can be arranged.
Western weapons and aid have been crucial to Ukraine’s ability to fight off Russia’s invasion, which some initially expected would more easily roll through the country.
The overnight mid-term elections in the United States will define the amount and the shape of Washington’s future political and financial support for Ukraine. If Republicans win control of Congress, it could become more difficult for President Joe Biden’s administration to push forward large packages of military and other aid for Ukraine.
Russia and Ukraine held several rounds of talks in Belarus and Turkey early on in the war, which is now nearing its nine-month mark. The talks stalled after the last meeting of the delegations in Istanbul, Turkey, in March yielded no results.
On Monday, Mr Zelensky (pictured below) said Kyiv has “repeatedly proposed [talks], to which we always received crazy Russian responses with terrorist attacks, shelling or blackmail”.
Russia, meanwhile, resumed calls for talks after Ukraine’s successful counter-offensive in the east and the south of the country began in September, but Ukraine has been rejecting the possibility ever since.
Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Andrei Rudenko, stressed yesterday that Moscow is not setting any conditions for the resumption of talks with Ukraine, and accused the Kyiv regime of lacking “good will”. He added: “This is their choice, we have always declared our readiness for such negotiations.”