The World Today
The Ukrainian president insists on a ceasefire to study Putin's demands without "the pressure of weapons."
BRUSSELS, 17 (EUROPA PRESS)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen agreed Sunday that it was impossible for kyiv to voluntarily hand over territories to Russia as part of a hypothetical peace agreement, during the president's express visit to Brussels less than 24 hours before a crucial meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House.
Zelensky will travel to Washington, D.C., flanked by von der Leyen and the leaders of Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, and Finland, plus the NATO secretary general, for Trump to explain in detail the conclusions of his Friday summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
Details of the meeting have not been officially confirmed, but sources close to the matter began suggesting this past Saturday that Putin does not want a ceasefire before any type of negotiation and has proposed keeping the Ukrainian region of Donbas, virtually all of the country's east, including the provinces of Donetsk and Luhansk, in exchange for suspending his offensive, as a first condition.
In response, and at a joint press conference this Sunday, the President of the European Commission insisted that, "with regard to Ukraine's territorial issues," the position of the EU and Ukraine is "clear": "International borders cannot be changed through the use of force. This kind of decision must be made by Ukraine, and Ukraine alone, but never by force," she asserted.
Zelensky did not mention these specific details, and in fact expressed his desire to be briefed in detail by Trump at their meeting at the White House, although he noted that "Putin has been unable to conquer Donetsk for twelve years" before emphasizing that "the Ukrainian Constitution declares both the surrender of territories and their exchange impossible."
"But since the territorial issue is so important," Zelenskyy added, "any discussion about it can only be held in a trilateral meeting with the United States and Russia, and so far Russia has given no indication that such a thing will happen."
INSISTENCE ON THE CEASEFIRE
The Ukrainian president also stressed the importance of declaring a ceasefire before negotiations begin. "Putin has many demands, and we don't know all of them. If there are as many as I've heard, it will be necessary to review them all in time, and that is impossible under the pressure of weapons, so it is necessary to declare a ceasefire before working, as quickly as possible, on a final agreement," Zelensky explained.
Regarding the security guarantees Ukraine demands to prevent a new conflict with Russia, the Ukrainian president linked this aspect to his country's accession process to the European Union. "Accession is part of the security issue," Zelensky emphasized, before recommending that Brussels align this process with Moldova's accession talks.
"There can't be a division between the two countries. In my opinion, that would be a very bad decision, because a division on this issue implies a European division over Ukraine," the president added.
MILITARIZATION
Both leaders have also expressed their opposition to any agreement that would weaken Ukraine's defensive capabilities, a country that must become an "iron hedgehog," as von der Leyen has described it, linking this issue to the aforementioned guarantees of security and territorial integrity.
"Ukraine must be able to defend its sovereignty. There can be no limitations on the Ukrainian armed forces, whether in cooperation with or assistance from third countries, nor limitations on the Ukrainian armed forces," von der Leyen said in response to another of the "fundamental demands," as the Russian president calls them: the demilitarization of the country.
Von der Leyen finally confirmed that the European Union will continue to support Ukraine in the area of military aid while maintaining economic pressure on Russia in the form of sanctions through preparations for a new package of measures, the 19th, which she estimated will be published around September.
"We have already put Russia's stranded assets to work for Ukraine , and we will continue to put pressure on Russia's war economy to bring President Putin to the negotiating table," the President of the European Commission said.
