President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he had a “very good telephone call” with Ukrainian President Voloydymr Zelensky, following up on his conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin the previous day.
Trump said his call with Zelensky, which lasted about an hour, was “based on the call made yesterday with President Putin in order to align both Russia and Ukraine in terms of their requests and needs.”
“We are very much on track, and I will ask Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, to give an accurate description of the points discussed,” Trump wrote on his preferred online platform, Truth Social.
Trump’s telephone conversation with Putin on Tuesday, which Trump described as “very good and productive,” lasted about two hours. The president said he and Putin “agreed to an immediate ceasefire on all energy and infrastructure, with an understanding that we will be working quickly to have a complete ceasefire and, ultimately, an end to this very horrible war between Russia and Ukraine.”
Zelensky was far less optimistic than Trump, accusing Putin on Tuesday night of having “effectively rejected” ceasefire proposals because Russia was still bombing “civilian infrastructure.”
Speaking at a press conference with Finnish President Alexander Stubb on Wednesday morning, Zelensky drew some red lines for his upcoming conversation with Trump.
“The most important thing for Ukraine is not to lose the independence and sovereignty of our state. Russia must never again have influence over the independence of Ukrainians,” Zelensky said.
“Even the territories that are temporarily occupied remain temporarily occupied. They will not become Russian,” he insisted.
Zelensky also said he would not “discuss what our armed forces should look like” with the Russians, insisting Ukrainian military power will remain “a key element of our independence, a just and guaranteed peace, and the assurance that the war will not return.”
“I do not believe that we should make any concessions in terms of assistance for Ukraine, but rather there should be an increase in assistance for Ukraine,” he said, dismissing Putin’s reported demand for a halt to U.S. military aid to Ukraine during his Tuesday call with Trump.
Finally, Zelensky ruled out “economic security guarantees” with Russia.
“The main economic security guarantee for Ukraine is the European Union,” he insisted.
“These are unconditional necessities for us. Thousands of people are in prisons. They all must be returned to their families. Those who were tortured must be brought home. And sadly, even those who were killed. These are non-negotiable issues,” he said.
Read the full article here
