Zelenskyy To Hold Urgent Talks With 30 Countries As Trump Pushes For Peace Deal

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was due to hold urgent talks with leaders and officials on Thursday. about 30 countries We support Kiev’s efforts to achieve fair conditions for ending terrorism war with Russia.

Among those expected to attend the meeting of Ukraine’s allies were the leaders of Germany, Britain and France. Coalition of Volunteersvia video link.

Zelenskyy stated that the talks were arranged hastily, at a time when Kiev authorities were trying to avoid this situation. get into the box With the statement of US President Donald Trump Quick solution requests. European governments are trying to steer peace talks by saying their own security is at risk.

Trump said Wednesday that he and European leaders the proposals discussed He spoke by phone in “pretty strong terms” and added that Zelenskyy “needs to be realistic” about his country’s stance. peace plan This will cede Ukrainian lands to Russia. He did not explain in detail.

Trump’s latest efforts to broker a deal are taking longer than he would like. Initially set a hard deadline Kiev to adopt peace plan before Thanksgiving. Previous deadlines set by Washington to reach a peace agreement had also passed without any progress.

Russia is also eager to show Trump that it is participating in peace efforts, hoping to avoid further US intervention. sanctions. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday that Russia had conveyed to Washington “additional proposals on collective security guarantees” that Ukraine and Europe say are necessary to deter future aggression.

“We understand that when discussing security guarantees we cannot limit ourselves only to Ukraine,” Lavrov said. He did not offer details of the Kremlin’s proposals.

Ukraine, meanwhile, carried out one of the largest drone strikes of the nearly four-year war overnight, forcing a seven-hour halt to flights in and out of four Moscow airports. Other airports in eight cities across Russia also face restrictions, Russia’s civil aviation authority Rosaviatsia said on Thursday.

The Russian Defense Ministry said its air defense intercepted 287 Ukrainian drones in many regions of Russia.

The display of Ukraine’s military capacity to strike deep into Russia appeared to provide a contrast to the Kremlin’s claim that its invasion was too large for its smaller neighbour.

Analysts say Russian President Vladimir Putin wants to portray himself as negotiating from a position of strength. But since the launch of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, Russia has captured only 20% of Ukraine.

There are signs that the negotiations have reached a crossroads. European leaders said on Wednesday the talks were at a “critical moment”.

Zelenskyy said late Wednesday that Ukraine will coordinate with European countries at a bilateral level next week.

“Ukraine is working quickly,” he said.

European Union countries will hold a regular summit in Brussels at the end of next week.

You can follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine