Zelenskyy says Ukraine ready for peace talks anywhere besides Russia and Belarus – Europe live | World news
Morning opening: Zelenskyy is ready for talks but won’t back down and needs financial support
Yakup Krupa
Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in question Kiev was ready for peace talks everywhere except Russia and Belarusbut stressful Ukrainian forces “will not back down” or give up territory.
In his statements quoted by Reuters and AFP, Zelenskyy also emphasized the following: Ukraine needed European financial support to continue fighting Russian forces for another two or three years. The EU’s plan to use frozen Russian assets to bolster it has hit a deadlock due to Belgian opposition.
“I emphasized this once again to all European leaders. I told them: We won’t fight for decades, but you must show that you can provide stable financial support to Ukraine for a while,” the Ukrainian president said in a statement this morning.
The timing here is probably no coincidence: Belgian prime minister Bart de Wever, who faces domestic pressure over the country’s draft budget, is set to meet Nato’s secretary general Mark Rutte later today and the issue is almost certain to feature in the talks.
Separately, Zelenskyy also called on the US president Donald Trump Putting more pressure on the Chinese leader Xi Jinping At their meeting this week, they decided to cut off their support to Russia.
“I think it could be one of these [Trump’s] He told reporters that strong moves could be made if China is ready to reduce imports from Russia, especially after this decisive sanctions step.
But a European leader seen as the main candidate to host potential future talks between Trump and Russia Vladimir Putin, It seems that the USA is not happy with the increasing pressure on Russia.
Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban, He told Italian journalists He said in the Vatican that he thought the sanctions imposed by Trump on Russian oil giants were wrong from the Hungarian perspective, as they could create a risk of an increase in energy prices.
Unsurprisingly, Finland seems isolated in its view, with the defense minister saying: Antti HakkanenHe praised the new sanctions, calling the move a great sign of the US president’s resolve against Vladimir Putin’s three-year war.
We expect to hear more about this today when Northern leaders meet with the EU in Stockholm Ursula von der Leyen Participating in talks that will undoubtedly include Ukraine.
His Tuesday, October 28, 2025, his Yakup Krupa here and this Europe Live.
Good morning.
important events
Yakup Krupa
As we mentioned before, we expect a press conference on the sidelines. Nordic Council It will meet in the next twenty minutes today with regional leaders including Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Norway, joined by the EU. Ursula von der Leyen.
I’ll keep an eye on this for you and bring you the latest lines here.
Belarusian president calls Lithuanian border closure a ‘crazy scam’ and criticizes EU plans to use frozen Russian assets
Meanwhile, the Belarusian autocratic leader, Alexander Lukashenko, He didn’t mince his words. There was reaction to Lithuania’s decision to close its border with Belarus due to the fact that smuggler balloons disrupted air traffic and caused the closure of airports.
Lukashenko called border closure a “crazy scam” He was nominally aiming to disrupt Chinese trade flows in the region, although he said he would be ready to apologize if Minsk was truly responsible for the disruptions.
In comments reported by Belarusian state news agency Belta and Reuters, Lukashenko said Lithuania had “found a solution”. a stupid excuse“These bubbles are valid even for a small country like Lithuania.”
The Belarusian president also strongly opposed Western plans to use Russia’s frozen assets, calling it “theft.” He also tried to claim that the deployment of Russia’s Oreshnik missile system to Belarus was not an aggressive move but merely a precautionary move to ensure the security of his country.
Morning opening: Zelenskyy is ready for talks but won’t back down and needs financial support
Yakup Krupa
Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, in question Kiev was ready for peace talks everywhere except Russia and Belarusbut stressful Ukrainian forces “will not back down” or give up territory.
In his statements quoted by Reuters and AFP, Zelenskyy also emphasized the following: Ukraine needed European financial support to continue fighting Russian forces for another two or three years. The EU’s plan to use frozen Russian assets to bolster it has hit a deadlock due to Belgian opposition.
“I emphasized this once again to all European leaders. I told them: We won’t fight for decades, but you must show that you can provide stable financial support to Ukraine for a while,” the Ukrainian president said in a statement this morning.
The timing here is probably no coincidence: Belgian prime minister Bart de Wever, who faces domestic pressure over the country’s draft budget, is set to meet Nato’s secretary general Mark Rutte later today and the issue is almost certain to feature in the talks.
Separately, Zelenskyy also called on the US president Donald Trump Putting more pressure on the Chinese leader Xi Jinping At their meeting this week, they decided to cut off their support to Russia.
“I think it could be one of these [Trump’s] He told reporters that strong moves could be made if China is ready to reduce imports from Russia, especially after this decisive sanctions step.
But a European leader seen as the main candidate to host potential future talks between Trump and Russia Vladimir Putin, It seems that the USA is not happy with the increasing pressure on Russia.
Prime Minister of Hungary, Viktor Orban, He told Italian journalists He said in the Vatican that he thought the sanctions imposed by Trump on Russian oil giants were wrong from the Hungarian perspective, as they could create a risk of an increase in energy prices.
Unsurprisingly, Finland seems isolated in its view, with the defense minister saying: Antti HakkanenHe praised the new sanctions, calling the move a great sign of the US president’s resolve against Vladimir Putin’s three-year war.
We expect to hear more about this today when Northern leaders meet with the EU in Stockholm Ursula von der Leyen Participating in talks that will undoubtedly include Ukraine.
His Tuesday, October 28, 2025, his Yakup Krupa here and this Europe Live.
Good morning.
