Zelenskyy: Ukrainians would not be ready to give up Donbas
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said he cannot support the idea of making concessions to Russia over Donbas and added that he is not sure Ukrainians would agree to this even in very difficult circumstances.
Source: Zelenskyy in an interview with Piers Morgan
Quote: "I can't really support such an idea. And I think that in any very difficult circumstances, I'm not sure that our people will be ready, because, as you said, thousands, dozens of thousands of Ukrainians have been killed on this direction, defending this part of Ukraine."
Details: Zelenskyy believes the issue of Donbas is not only a moral question but also one of values and freedom.
Quote: "It's not just empty words for us, it's very important. That's why such a strong answer was from the first day of this war."
Details: Zelenskyy added that "defending these values, we have to understand that Donbas is a part of our independence, it's a part of our values".
Background:
- On the morning of 18 February, Rustem Umierov, the head of the Ukrainian delegation, Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council, reported that the second day of the trilateral talks on the settlement of Russia's war against Ukraine had begun in Geneva.
- Later, Vladimir Medinsky, the head of the Russian delegation, announced that the latest round of talks had concluded. He said that the negotiations in Geneva lasted about two hours and were "tough but business-like".
- Zelenskyy reported that it was agreed at the talks that the US will be involved in the monitoring of a ceasefire.
- He added that political issues concerning possible compromises and the need for a meeting of leaders had not been sufficiently addressed in the negotiations on ending the war.
Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!