Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy states that he is ready to hold a face-to-face meeting with Vladimir Putin in Turkey. The main goal is a ceasefire along the entire frontline, the Ukrainian President said in an interview with CNN Türk.
Zelenskyy hopes that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will help facilitate the organization of talks with Putin in Turkey.
The Ukrainian President considers a dialogue at the highest level "necessary" because previous contacts between the sides have so far failed to help end the war.
"We are ready for this meeting in Turkey. I know that President Erdogan has his own connections with Putin. Therefore, we support a meeting in Turkey," Zelenskyy said.
According to him, direct negotiations between the presidents will help find solutions to issues that cannot be resolved at the delegation and technical group levels.
"That is exactly why I want to meet with him as the person who makes the decisions," Zelenskyy noted.
Among the key topics of a potential meeting with Putin, the Ukrainian leader named a ceasefire along the frontline and the creation of a mechanism to monitor compliance with agreements.
In addition, in his opinion, security guarantees, the reconstruction of Ukraine, and territorial issues should be discussed at the presidential level.
At the same time, Zelenskyy emphasized that he will not agree to Putin's demands regarding the handover of Donbas and the recognition of Crimea as Russian. He explained that such concessions would contradict the Constitution of Ukraine.
For context, the Kremlin earlier stated that Putin might answer a call from Zelenskyy. However, the Office of the President of Ukraine stated that Zelenskyy does not plan to call Putin for the time being.
