KYIV — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy mentioned Friday that Ukrainian officers hope to fulfill with U.S. President Donald Trump and European leaders subsequent week to speed up efforts to finish Russia’s three-year battle on Ukraine, as Moscow continues its devastating air marketing campaign on civilian areas.
The proposed conferences intention to construct momentum for peace as Zelenskyy voiced frustration over what he described as Russia’s “lack of constructive engagement.”
The Kremlin has delayed a U.S.-backed proposal for direct talks between Zelenskyy and Russian President Vladimir Putin, regardless of repeated American warnings that Moscow might face sanctions if it resists.
At an emergency assembly of the U.N. Safety Council on Friday, U.S. officers demanded Russia transfer towards peace after a significant missile and drone assault that killed not less than 23 individuals in Kyiv this week.
John Kelley, minister-counselor on the U.S. mission, mentioned the strikes “forged doubt on the seriousness of Russia’s want for peace” and urged Putin and Zelenskyy to fulfill.
Ukraine pushes diplomacy ahead
Zelenskyy’s high adviser Andriy Yermak met in New York with Trump’s particular envoy Steve Witkoff to debate preparations for the talks.
Yermak mentioned the precedence was to “push ahead actual diplomacy” and guarantee commitments made on the Washington summit are applied.
He accused Russia of intentionally dragging out negotiations, noting that Moscow insists lower-level officers should finalize groundwork earlier than any summit.
Zelenskyy dismissed that argument as “synthetic,” insisting leaders should “urgently be concerned to succeed in agreements.”
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov reiterated Friday that Putin doesn’t rule out a gathering however maintained it ought to solely happen after “expert-level” work is accomplished.
Name for sanctions and safety ensures
Zelenskyy urged swift secondary sanctions on international locations that proceed to commerce with Russia, saying they assist maintain Moscow’s battle financial system.
He additionally referred to as for postwar safety ensures that embrace a safe provide of Western weapons, both by means of home manufacturing or direct help from Europe and the US.
His remarks got here as Ukraine mourned victims of this week’s assault on Kyiv.
Authorities declared Friday a day of mourning, with flags at half-staff and public occasions canceled.
A minimum of 23 individuals had been killed, together with 4 youngsters, in one of many deadliest strikes on the capital for the reason that full-scale invasion started in 2022.
Inside Minister Ihor Klymenko mentioned 17 individuals had been rescued from rubble, amongst them 4 youngsters.
The youngest sufferer was a 2-year-old woman. Eight individuals stay unaccounted for, and greater than 50 had been wounded.
Diplomatic calendar forward
Putin is anticipated to journey to China on Sunday for talks with leaders from Iran and North Korea, each accused by the U.S. of aiding Russia’s battle effort.
In the meantime, the battle will dominate the agenda on the U.N. Common Meeting in New York from Sept. 22 to 29, the place Zelenskyy and Trump are each anticipated to seem.
Analysts on the Atlantic Council famous that successive U.S. administrations have averted urgent Putin too onerous over fears of nuclear escalation.
“Putin is aware of that Washington and its allies have the capability to reverse his features in Ukraine, however he doubts the US has the desire to take action,” the assume tank mentioned in an evaluation this week. — Businesses
