Russia's readiness depends on several indicators, he believes.
Negotiations in Turkey The Ukrainian operation in the Kursk region has had a major impact on the countries of the Global South, according to President Volodymyr Zelensky. At a meeting with journalists, he said that this operation showed them the real state of the Russian army: “that in a few months their army cannot drive the Ukrainian military out of the territory of the Russian Federation.”
Speaking about Russia's readiness for negotiations, the president said that it depends on several factors, including the US elections. He believes that the Kremlin will be watching US policy.
“The United States will demonstrate policy very quickly, after the elections, in my opinion. And according to the information that I received from the candidates, this is a positive from my meetings with them. I believe that they will not wait until January (ed.: when the next president replaces the previous head of the White House): they will not be able to do something according to their authority, but they will be able to do something,” Zelensky said.
The second indicator is energy security and free navigation. If Russia stops striking energy and civilian ships, it will signal its readiness to sit down at the negotiating table.
“Also, if we manage to get a result on these two points, it will be a signal of whether Russia is ready to end the war. The third is our work with some countries of the Global South. We are doing it. We have meetings. Different countries, different contacts,” he explained.
In general, when asked whether Ukrainian partners are putting pressure on the issue of starting negotiations with Russia, the president joked: “Over the years, people have higher pressure in general. We are able to monitor this process and be in a strong enough position for Ukraine.”
- Ukraine is counting on the presence of Russian representatives at the second Peace Summit, which was previously planned to be held in November. Moscow denies its intention to participate. According to Zelensky, Ukrainian partners are insisting on the presence of Russians.