Berlin (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was set to push on with talks in Berlin on Monday with US President Donald Trump’s envoys on how to end the grinding war with Russia. As the conflict raged on, Zelensky’s delegation huddled for over five hours on Sunday with Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and the US president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. Witkoff said afterwards on X that “a lot of progress was made, and they will meet again tomorrow morning.”
Their meeting was held under tight security in the chancellery in Berlin, where Germany’s leader Friedrich Merz was Monday due to host a dinner with Zelensky, a group of European leaders, and the NATO and EU chiefs. An AFP photographer saw the Ukrainian leader leave the chancellery shortly before 9:00 pm (2000 GMT). Trump has pushed for an end to the almost four-year-old war, but Kyiv and its allies in Europe are at pains to prevent any settlement that would strongly favor Russia. Key questions remain on Ukrainian territorial concessions, future security guarantees for Kyiv, and whether Moscow would agree to any proposal hammered out by the Europeans and Americans.
“We want a lasting peace in Ukraine,” Merz wrote on X. “Difficult questions lie ahead of us, but we are determined to move forward. Ukrainian interests are also European interests.” Zelensky, as he headed to Germany, said he was ready for “dialogue” on ending the war that started with Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. He said he hoped Washington would back the idea of freezing the front line where it is, rather than Ukraine ceding the entire Donbas region as Moscow demands. “The fairest possible option is to ‘stay where we are’,” Zelensky told reporters on his way to Berlin. “This is true because it is a ceasefire…I know that Russia does not view this positively, and I would like the Americans to support us on this issue.”
Trump has been stepping up pressure on Ukraine to reach an agreement since revealing a plan last month to end the war that was criticized as echoing Moscow’s demands. Kyiv officials later said they had sent Washington a revised version. Witkoff said “in-depth discussions” were held on Sunday about that plan, “economic agendas, and more”. Zelensky said on Sunday: “The most important thing is that the plan should be as fair as possible, first and foremost for Ukraine, because Russia started the war.”
In Russia, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov cast strong doubt on the latest round of diplomacy. “I think the contribution of both Ukrainians and Europeans to these documents is unlikely to be constructive, that’s the problem,” he said in a video message. Ushakov said Moscow had not seen the latest documents but added that “if there are any relevant amendments, we will have very strong objections, since we have very clearly stated our position, which, it seems, was quite clear to the Americans.”
Europeans and Ukrainians have asked the United States to provide them with “security guarantees” before Ukraine negotiates any territorial concessions, France said Friday. Under the latest US plan, Ukraine would be able to join the EU as early as January 2027, a senior official familiar with the matter told AFP Friday on condition of anonymity. The latest push in the efforts to put an end to the war came as Kyiv reported new aerial strikes on its territory. According to its air force, Russia launched 138 drones and a ballistic missile overnight. A Russian drone has hit “one of the hospitals in Kherson,” wounding two people, including a nurse, the regional administration said on Telegram. At least 11 people were wounded in strikes on the Zaporizhzhia region, governor Ivan Fedorov said.
© 2024 AFP
