Volodymyr Zelensky, Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin Photo: YURI KOCHETKOV / AFP / Profimedia
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky urged his American counterpart, Donald Trump, to exert more pressure on Russian leader Vladimir Putin to end the war, reports AFP.
Asked in an interview broadcast by NBC on Sunday if he thought Trump should be tougher on Putin after leading efforts to broker a cease-fire in Gaza, Zelenskiy replied in English: “Yes, and even more so because Putin is something similar, but stronger than Hamas. It's a bigger war, and he has the second army in the world.”
“And that's why more pressure,” the Ukrainian leader continued.
The interview was broadcast after Volodymyr Zelenskiy's return from his trip to Washington, where he failed to obtain US Tomahawk long-range missiles.
Zelenskiy met with Trump at the White House after weeks of demanding the missiles, hoping to capitalize on the US president's growing dissatisfaction with his Russian counterpart as the Alaska summit produced no progress. However, the leader of Ukraine left empty-handed.
“How can there be accords without us?”
Donald Trump, who hopes to achieve a new diplomatic success after the one in the Middle East, announced on Thursday that he had agreed with Vladimir Putin to have another meeting, this time in Budapest. In the interview with NBC, Volodymyr Zelensky said that he should also be included in the talks between the two.
“If we really want to have a just and lasting peace, we need both sides of this tragedy,” Zelenskiy said. “Yes, he is an occupier, but Ukraine is suffering and fighting. And of course, how can there be some agreements without us?” the Ukrainian president added.
In an interview also broadcast on Sunday, shortly after Zelenskiy's, Trump signaled again that he is not willing to send Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine.
“We have to remember one thing. We need them for ourselves as well. You know, we can't give all our weapons to Ukraine,” Donald Trump said on Fox.
Moscow has stepped up attacks on Ukrainian civilian infrastructure in recent weeks, leaving thousands without heat and electricity as the cold season approaches.
