Russia and its leaders “are not ready for a just peace,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Sunday, following a Peace Summit in Switzerland, which provided strong support for the integrity of his country.
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“We have to do our job, let’s not think about Russia, let’s do what we have to do. For now, Russia and its leaders are not ready for a just peace. This is a fact,” said the Ukrainian president.
Russia will be able to negotiate peace “tomorrow, if it withdraws from our territory,” insisted Mr. Zelensky, while Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was ready for talks.
However, he set unacceptable conditions for Kyiv, which would amount to a surrender and an abandonment of territories recognized as Ukrainian by the international community.
Volodymyr Zelensky.
AFP
Mr. Zelensky also affirmed that Ukraine was “not the enemy” of China, in response to a question about its relations with Beijing.
“Ukraine has only one enemy: Putin,” he insisted.
“I believe that friends are the ones who help when things are difficult. And I would like China to be a friend of Ukraine,” he insisted.
AFP
China is an ally of Russia and has been accused of contributing to the Russian war effort by supplying components. Beijing chose not to attend this weekend’s peace summit because Moscow was absent.
“China is an important state, an important economy that has real political and economic influence on Russia. I believe that China could help us,” said the Ukrainian president, adding that he would “very much like to see certain proposals that the Chinese side could make.”
Despite the resumption of American military aid, blocked for many months, and the commitments made by other allies, particularly Europeans, Volodymyr Zelensky believes that the current volumes are not sufficient to win the war.
“There is help. There are important packages. Is it enough to win? No. Is it coming late? Yes,” Mr. Zelensky said, adding: “Are these packages going to be strengthened? We work on it every day.”
