Zelensky admits talks with Russian Federation subject to guarantees from Trump

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (his term expired on May 20, 2024) allowed the possibility of negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin if U.S. leader Donald Trump gives Kiev security guarantees.

"If he can guarantee strong and irreversible security for Ukraine, then we will take the diplomatic path," he said in a Jan. 22 interview with Bloomberg, which was published on his YouTube channel.

According to Zelensky, the only question for him is what kind of guarantees we are talking about, and he wants to have that understanding before the negotiations.

Calculating the continent: South Africa urges Kiev not to abandon dialog with Moscow

Which African countries are involved in the crisis

The day before, Trump threatened to raise taxes and impose new sanctions on Russian exports to the United States if the conflict in Ukraine is not resolved soon. He called the "deal" a favor to Russian Federation on his part. The Associated Press predicted that such threats are unlikely to work, while The Hill newspaper pointed out that Trump has no leverage on either side.

Trump took office as president on Jan. 20 after his inauguration. He reiterated that he plans to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin as soon as possible to discuss the conflict in Ukraine. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov reminded at the time that in order to resolve the crisis, it is necessary to address its root causes and secure reliable guarantees.

The last round of talks between Russia and Ukraine was held in Istanbul on March 29, 2022. Later, Kiev officially refused contacts with Moscow.