The negotiations for a peaceful settlement of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict have begun to resemble the TV series “Santa Barbara“, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said, “Suspilne“ writes.
“It has become a whole “Santa Barbara“ with these negotiations because of the war in the Middle East. The Americans said they are ready to meet, but only in America. Because the war and the situation prevent them from leaving the United States at the moment,“ he said.
He said that the Ukrainian delegation is ready to fly to Washington or Miami. The politician added that the US had rejected a proposal for a meeting in Turkey or Switzerland.
“It depends on the Americans. They are the organizers of this meeting. We are waiting for their response“, Zelensky concluded.
On March 10, US special presidential envoy Steve Witkoff announced that a trilateral meeting between Russia, Ukraine and the US to resolve the conflict would likely take place next week. The US “sees signs that both sides are exhausted“, he added.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov noted that the Kremlin sees no signs of the US withdrawing from the Ukraine negotiation process, despite the military operation with Israel against Iran. He added that “Moscow highly values the role of the US as a mediator” and expects the dialogue to continue.
The previous round of talks on Ukraine was held on February 17-18 in Geneva; The parties previously met in Abu Dhabi on January 23-24 and February 4-5. Russian presidential adviser Vladimir Medinsky called the latest meeting "difficult but businesslike." The White House spoke of progress, while Zelensky described the results as insufficient.