LIVE – Ukraine: “We must do everything so that this war ends next year,” says Zelensky

Volodymyr Zelensky said, on Japanese foreigners, Takeshi Iwaya, in Ukraine.

In a second message on X, the Ukrainian president said that one of their topics of discussion was “North Korea’s alliance with Russia.” “Russia is teaching North Korea modern warfare methods that could lead to significant and widespread destabilization,” wrote Volodymyr Zelensky, before adding: “We must work together with all our other partners to counter this situation .”

In a message published on X, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky thanked the G7 leaders for “their unwavering support for Ukraine.” “At a time when Russia remains the only obstacle to a just and lasting peace, it is essential to send a clear message: aggression and violations of the international order, as defined in the Charter of the United Nations , will not be tolerated and those responsible will suffer the consequences,” he added.

In an interview broadcast on Saturday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke of a “really complicated” situation on the eastern front, where the Russian army is advancing rapidly against fewer and less well-armed Ukrainian troops. He estimated that his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin was seeking to emerge from his “political isolation” by speaking to leaders. But “Putin doesn’t want peace at all,” he said.

Asked about the conditions necessary for the opening of negotiations, Volodymyr Zelensky estimated that this would only be possible if “Ukraine is not alone with Russia” and if it is “strong”, in a strong call to its Western partners. “If we only talk with Putin, only with a murderer, and we find ourselves in the current conditions, not reinforced by some important elements, I think that Ukraine loses from these negotiations,” said Volodymyr Zelensky .

Olaf Scholz spoke to the Russian president on Friday to discuss conditions for peace in Ukraine. A first meeting in almost two years between the two leaders which goes badly on the kyiv side. Volodymyr Zelensky accused Germany of playing into Vladimir Putin’s hands. More details in our article below.

Moscow remains “the only obstacle to a just peace” for Ukraine, G7 countries said in a statement on Saturday (new window) marking 1,000 days since the Russian invasion of Ukrainian territory. The leaders of the G7 (France, United States, Japan, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy) reaffirm their “firm support for Ukraine for as long as necessary”.

“The G7 confirms its commitment to imposing high costs on Russia through sanctions, export controls and other effective measures. We remain united alongside Ukraine,” they assure.

Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya, visiting Ukraine on Saturday, said the entry of North Korean troops into the conflict would not only “aggravate” the situation in Ukraine but would have an “extremely significant” impact. ” on the security of East Asia.

North Korean troops are now engaged in combat alongside Russian soldiers, according to kyiv and Washington, with the Kremlin evading questions on this subject.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is under fire from the German conservative opposition who accused him on Saturday of having contributed to Moscow’s “propaganda” through his telephone call to the Russian president. Vladimir Putin “will take the fact that Scholz called him more as a sign of weakness than strength,” Jürgen Hardt, the conservative CDU party’s foreign policy spokesman, told German radio Deutschlandfunk.

On Friday, the chancellor spoke for an hour by telephone with Putin, for the first time in almost two years.

Ukraine’s president calls for ending conflict next year “by diplomatic means.”

In an interview on Ukrainian radio broadcast on Saturday, Volodymyr Zelensky emphasizes his desire to put an end to the conflict which has plagued his country for almost three years. “We must do everything to ensure that this war ends next year. We must end it by diplomatic means”he said in an interview with Ukrainian radio. But Vladimir Putin “doesn’t want peace at all”he said.

The Ukrainian president had little interest in the telephone conversation between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Details from Stanislas Poyet, our correspondent in Ukraine.

Hello everyone and welcome to this live dedicated to the situation in Ukraine. The last 24 hours have been marked by the first meeting in two between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Russian President Vladimir Putin. During the hour-long call, Olaf Scholz asked Russia to show its “desire to begin negotiations with Ukraine with a view to a just and lasting peace”according to the German government. The Russian head of state, for his part, reaffirmed that any peace agreement should reflect the “new territorial realities”demanding the cession of territories

President Volodymyr Zelensky protested against this exchange, fearing being forced into negotiations unfavorable to his country. He believes that talking to his Russian counterpart “opens Pandora’s box” and signals “an attempt at appeasement” towards Moscow. In an interview with the Ukrainian media Suspilne, he argued that “the war will end sooner” under the new mandate of Donald Trump. He mentioned “constructive interaction” with the president-elect.