Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that he would reject any peace negations between the United States and Russia if Kyiv was not involved.
Zelensky also insisted European Union leaders must be invited to negotiations after Donald Trump claimed that he and Vladimir Putin had agreed to start talks on ending the conflict.
Zelensky said before travelling to the Munich Security Conference in Germany today (13 February): “It’s important that everything does not go according to Putin’s plans, in which he wants to do everything to make his negotiations bilateral [with the US].
“We, as an independent country, simply will not be able to accept any agreements without us.
“I articulate this very clearly to our partners. Any bilateral negotiations about Ukraine, not on other topics, but any bilateral talks about Ukraine without us, we will not accept.”
The US president told how he held individual calls with the Russian leader and Zelensky yesterday.
Donald Trump said he spoke to Vladimir Putin about ending the war on Wednesday (Photo: The Associated Press)After Zelensky’s remarks Russia said Ukraine will take part in negotiations.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Ukraine “will of course one way or another be taking part in the negotiations”, the TASS News agency reports.
He added: “There will be a bilateral Russian-American track of that dialogue, and a track that will be associated with the involvement of Ukraine.”
Pete Hegseth, US Defence Secretary, said negotiations “will be had with both” Putin and Zelensky.
He added Nato and its European members will play a role in the “need for peace” and negotiations “affect a lot of people”.
Hegseth says “future funding” could be on the negotiation table.
Sir Keir Starmer also said today that “we must make sure Ukraine is at the heart” of negotiations for a peace deal with Russia.
The Prime Minister said it was “really important that Ukraine is in the strongest possible position”.
He insisted: “Nobody wants the conflict to continue and Ukrainians – more than anybody – want the conflict to end, but we must make sure Ukraine is at the heart of this.
“There can’t be negotiations around Ukraine without Ukraine being at the heart of it.
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Read More“And it’s really important that Ukraine is in the strongest possible position, whether that’s in discussions, or whether it’s continued fighting.
“Which is why I’ve been arguing since I’ve been Prime Minister that we need to ramp up the money, the capability and the training that we’re putting into Ukraine, and we’re delivering even more of that this year than we were last year.
“It’s really important: the strongest possible position for Ukraine. This has to be done with Ukraine.”
Speaking to ITV News, Sir Keir said that he expected the UK would “play its part” in a security guarantee for Ukraine if peace was agreed, and the country should remain an “independent viable state” following the end of negotiations.
He added: “But we do need that to be a guarantee that has US backing, and again, I’ve been very clear about that.”
The US has suggested that as part of a peace deal, Ukraine must accept it will have to give up some territory to Russia, and that Nato membership is not a realistic prospect.
But Nato’s official position – endorsed by Sir Keir’s Government in the UK/Ukraine 100-year partnership – is that Kyiv is on an “irreversible” path to joining the alliance.
Additional reporting by Press Association.
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