Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has expressed his frustration with the United States, accusing it of being unwilling to assist Ukraine while engaging in economic negotiations with Russia. This statement comes in the wake of a brutal attack by Russia on two civilian buses in Kramatorsk, which resulted in at least 30 fatalities, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Over the past two days, Russian strikes have left 68 people dead and 215 injured, Zelensky reported. Speaking to reporters in Prilukî, where 22 individuals were killed in an air raid on a residential building, he urged the United States to fulfill his requests for expanding Ukraine’s access to the Starlink satellite service to help target Russian ballistic missile launchers.
“Open Starlink for Ukraine. You made it available in response to Iran… I have been very open – provide it to us, help us protect our skies and dominate there. Then Putin will sit at the negotiating table,” he stated.
Zelensky Questions US Claims of Strategic Impasse
During his press statements, Zelensky appeared to reference comments made by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who suggested that the conflict in Ukraine had reached a “dangerous strategic impasse.”
“So where is the truth here, where is the honesty? Where is the deadlock? (…) This is called a lack of will,” the Ukrainian president said.
“You cannot, on one hand, negotiate with the Russians about future economic projects and, on the other hand, claim that we are in some form of… diplomatic deadlock,” Zelensky added.
High-ranking Russian and American officials, including US Special Envoy Jared Kushner, have been in discussions to attract an American investor to the Nord Stream project, which previously supplied Russian gas to Germany before Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, Reuters reported on Thursday.
Zelensky noted that Ukrainian negotiators will be in the US for discussions on Friday and Saturday, urging President Donald Trump to increase sanctions pressure on Russia.
