The US is looking for various options to resolve the territorial issue surrounding Donbas as part of efforts to stop the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said at a press conference in Dublin.
According to him, the US regularly raises the issue during the negotiations. Zelensky said that, under the American approach, ending the war could be linked to Ukraine withdrawing from its territory.
“We cannot be spoken to in this way when the independence of our country is at stake,” Zelensky said.The Ukrainian president added that Washington was trying to find various options on the issue and that he had heard a number of proposals. He declined to go into details, however, saying that discussing them would take hours.
Zelensky expects pressure on Russia
According to Zelensky, the outcome depends on the US political will to exert pressure on Russia, as well as on the format of the dialogue between Washington and Moscow.
He said that if there was an intention to resolve these delicate issues, they should be discussed and decided at the leaders’ level. According to him, this requires positive signals from the US and support from the Russian side with American involvement.
Upcoming meetings with US representatives
US President’s special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are due to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Russia on Thursday.
Zelensky said that the same evening, the American representatives would also hold talks with him in Dublin. The meeting will take place against the backdrop of efforts to find an acceptable formula for the territorial issue and to end the war.
Sources: pravda.com.ua