Zelenskyy Says Won’t Accept Any Agreements About Ukraine That Don’t Involve His Country- wna24

Khmelnytski: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Thursday that he will not accept any agreements regarding Ukraine that exclude his country from the discussions.

In his first comments to journalists since US President Donald Trump spoke individually with Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian leader emphasized that the key goal was to prevent everything from going according to Putin’s plan.

“We cannot accept it, as an independent country, any agreements (made) without us. I articulate this very clearly to our partners –- any bilateral negotiations about Ukraine, not on other topics, but any bilateral talks about Ukraine without us –- we will not accept,” Zelenskyy said during his visit to a nuclear power station in western Ukraine.

Zelenskyy said during his conversation with Trump on Wednesday that the U.S. president expressed his desire to speak to both the Russian and Ukrainian leaders at the same time.

“He never mentioned in a conversation that Putin and Russia was a priority. We, today, trust these words. For us it is very important to preserve the support of the United States of America,” Zelenskyy said.

Trump seems inclined to negotiate a deal without consulting Ukraine and European governments, raising concerns over the future of the conflict.

Additionally, he effectively shattered Ukraine’s aspirations of joining NATO, despite the alliance declaring less than a year ago that it was an “irreversible” step, and dashed hopes of reclaiming territories, nearly 20% of the country, currently occupied by Russia.

The U.S. administration’s approach to a potential settlement is notably close to Moscow’s vision of how the war should end. That has caused alarm and tension within the 32-nation NATO alliance and 27-nation European Union.

Some European governments who fear their countries could also be in the Kremlin’s crosshairs were alarmed by Washington’s new course, saying they must have a seat at the negotiating table.

“Ukraine, Europe and the United States should work on this together. TOGETHER,” Poland’s Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on social media Wednesday.

Others balked at Trump’s overtures and poured cold water on his upbeat outlook.