Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, announced today, Wednesday, his readiness to accept a peace agreement that freezes the fighting along the current front lines with Russia, considering that the "ceasefire constitutes a realistic step towards ending the war and moving to the diplomatic track."
In an interview with the program "Fox and Friends," Zelenskyy responded to a question about whether he would accept a peace agreement that freezes the battle lines in their current state, "We must freeze the situation now, and I think this is the actual means to end this war. We call it a ceasefire."Zelenskyy's statements come at a time when U.S. efforts to resume negotiations regarding the war are intensifying, after U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff held a meeting with the Ukrainian president in Oslo on Tuesday before heading to St. Petersburg to meet with Putin.
Zelenskyy described his talks with Witkoff in Oslo as "productive," expressing hope that the U.S. envoy's talks with Putin would result in positive developments. Washington is pushing for the resumption of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine, in an attempt to find a path to end the war ongoing since 2022.
In this context, the Kremlin reported that "the meeting between Putin and Witkoff in St. Petersburg has ended, after lasting about three hours, and that Moscow will study the American proposals."
The Kremlin said, "The responsibility to make the necessary decisions falls largely on the Ukrainian side," warning that "the situation may become worse for Kyiv if it does not make what it described as the right decisions now."
The Kremlin noted that "the talks between Putin and Witkoff in St. Petersburg were substantive, and the American envoy Jared Kushner joined them by phone."Kyiv seeks guarantees to prevent renewed attacks, while disagreements between Moscow and Kyiv remain regarding the terms of ending the war. No final agreement has yet been announced to determine the mechanisms for stopping fighting or ensure reaching a comprehensive settlement.
In parallel, Kremlin foreign policy advisor Yuri Ushakov told the state television channel Vesti that a new round of trilateral talks involving Russia, the United States, and Ukraine could be held in Abu Dhabi. Ushakov said: "We are considering Abu Dhabi as the meeting site... and there is an agreement to hold it around mid-November."
Ushakov added that he believes the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is nearing its end but clarified that it is difficult to determine how close this end is.
