Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy yesterday dismissed planned talks between the US and Russia on ending the war in Ukraine, reiterating that Kyiv should be involved in any discussions about its own future.
His comments came as US Secretary of State Marco Rubio arrived in Saudi Arabia ahead of the high-stakes talks between US and Russian officials which have spurred Ukraine’s concerns that it could be left out of a peace process.
“Ukraine will not take part. Ukraine did not know anything about it,” he told reporters in a virtual briefing from the United Arab Emirates, where he was on a state visit.
Photo: AP
“Ukraine regards any negotiations on Ukraine without Ukraine as ones that have no result, and we cannot recognize ... any agreements about us without us,” he said.
The Kremlin yesterday said it was sending Russian President Vladimir Putin’s top diplomat and his chief foreign policy adviser to Riyadh for the talks, which would aim to pave the way for a meeting between US and Russian leaders.
Zelenskiy said he would be visiting Saudi Arabia tomorrow, but that his state visit was planned in advance and had nothing to do with the US-Russian talks.
He also called for stronger US security guarantees as part of a critical minerals deal opening up Ukraine’s vast natural wealth in exchange for US support.
“The question is not just about taking the resource, the question is what you invest, so that something comes out of this resource,” he said.
“We are not just a simple supplier for raw materials, and I think this point should be clearly reflected in the document.”
Zelenskiy said he would invite Trump’s Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg to the front line to meet with troops during a trip slated for Thursday.
Meanwhile, Germany yesterday said it was “premature” to discuss sending its troops to war-torn Ukraine as part of any potential peacekeeping force after Britain declared it was ready for such a move.
“We have repeatedly stated that, first of all, we have to wait and see whether and how peace will hopefully emerge for Ukraine,” German deputy government spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann said.
“Then we will be able to talk about the conditions and how this can be implemented,” she told reporters in Berlin, adding it was “premature to discuss [sending troops] at the present time.”
A government source in Berlin said Germany rejects sending troops to Ukraine for a potential future peacekeeping mission if it is “without full US involvement.”
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Sunday said that he was willing to put “our own troops on the ground if necessary” in Ukraine to ensure security in Europe.
The comments came as European leaders were due to meet in Paris yesterday to address Washington’s shock policy shift on the Russia-Ukraine war.
In Stockholm, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson yesterday said that the nation would consider contributing to post-war peacekeeping forces in Ukraine.
He added that negotiations would need to progress before any such decision was taken.
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