Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has proposed a ceasefire until a meeting between him and Russian President Vladimir Putin takes place, Reuters reported, quoted by BTA.
"My proposal, which I believe our partners can support, is that we offer the Russians a ceasefire until the leaders meet“, Zelensky said at a briefing in Kiev.
“We are ready for such a meeting no matter when“, he assured, mentioning the possible presence of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who proposed a trilateral meeting between Putin, Zelensky and Trump on Monday.
Zelensky also said that the peace terms presented by Moscow are ultimatums, reported Agence France-Presse. He was referring to the conditions set out in the memorandum on the settlement of the conflict that Russia handed over to Ukraine at the beginning of the week. In one of these conditions, Russia demands that Kiev withdraw its military from four Ukrainian regions that it claims to have annexed to its territory.
"This is an ultimatum that the Russian side is giving us. "Therefore, in my opinion, I think they (the Russians) did not send it before the discussions because they understand that if it (the memorandum) was made public, Ukraine would have every right not to come to this meeting in Istanbul," the Ukrainian president said.
Zelensky also said that continuing the talks in Istanbul with the current delegations made no sense after two rounds of negotiations that had yielded little results, Agence France-Presse reported.
He said he thought Russia was ready to continue exchanging prisoners of war, but that "the current Russian delegation, headed by a second-rate Russian presidential adviser, is not at the level to discuss a ceasefire", which Kiev is insisting on. "Continuing diplomatic meetings in Istanbul at one level, which does not allow for anything to be settled, makes no sense", Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian president also said that 41 Russian aircraft were damaged beyond repair in the recent attack on a Russian air base, Reuters reported.