Zelenskiy rejects reports that US officials are lobbying for peaceUkraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskiy has reaffirmed his stance that this is not the time to negotiate with Russia, and he also denied that any western leaders were pressuring him to do so.
He told a joint news conference with the European Commission head, Ursula von der Leyen, in Kyiv:
Everyone knows my attitude, which coincides with the attitude of Ukrainian society … Today no one is putting pressure [on me to negotiate], not one of the leaders of the EU or the United States. For us now to sit down with Russia and talk and give it something – this will not happen.
Zelenskiy also said that Ukraine was committed to pressing on with reforms, including strengthening anti-corruption practices. The EU next week is expected to present a report on Ukraine’s progress in its bid to join the bloc.