Zelenskyy says meeting with Putin at risk of collapse

The issue of ending the war must be resolved at the level of the leaders of Ukraine and the aggressor state, Russia. However, the Russians are doing everything to prevent such negotiations from taking place.

This was stated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a briefing with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who arrived in Kyiv.

Zelenskyy called the visit to Washington on August 18 "historically significant." In particular, during this meeting, formats for meetings with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin were discussed—both bilateral and trilateral.

"It is at the level of leaders that issues must be resolved to end the war. But we see now that the Russians are doing everything to ensure the meeting does not happen. Unlike Russia, Ukraine is not afraid of any meetings with leaders. We are ready to work productively, to the maximum," the head of state emphasized.

The President stressed that Kyiv has no direct agreements with the Russian side. Zelenskyy believes it would be "preferable" to first hold a trilateral meeting. However, if the American president insists on holding talks between the leaders of Ukraine and Russia, "we are ready to support a bilateral track, followed by a trilateral one."

"We agreed with President Trump. He is the only person who can stop Putin today. We agreed that it is right to move toward a diplomatic direction. I supported this direction proposed by President Trump. Let’s talk about the date and the place," Zelenskyy added.

According to him, if Moscow refuses diplomacy, strong sanctions packages are needed.