“According to him, the movement to “real peace, to guaranteed security” is needed, and Russia is “the only entity that delay this war””, – WRITE: www.radiosvoboda.org
“Today there were meetings on diplomatic work. I recently spoke with the Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. A meeting with the American team was held yesterday. Today, representatives of the United States spoke with a team of war – with representatives of Russia. After that, the meeting of Ukrainian and American teams again. I also expect a new report, ”he said in an evening video.
According to him, it is necessary to move to “real peace, to guaranteed security”, and Russia is “the only entity that delay this war.”
“And to squeeze Russia to peace, you need strong things, strong steps. We are ready to maintain every strong initiative that will make diplomacy more effective, which means that Russia must be forced by Russia to the desire to end the war. And these are sanctions. And this is the support of Ukraine. And this is international coordination, ”Zelensky added.
The Minister of Defense of Ukraine Rustem Umerov, who is in Saudi Arabia, arrived at the scene of the American delegation on March 24. This is the second round of negotiations of representatives of Ukraine and the United States, in the interval between which American managers had a dialogue with a delegation of Russia.
The Russian and American sides began communication in the morning of March 24, the conversation lasted for several hours. The meeting took place in closed mode.
Earlier, the assistant of Russian President Yuriy Ushakov reported that negotiations would be dedicated to the possible renewal of the Black Sea Grain Initiative, which “concerns the safety of shipping in the Black Sea”. The Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that in addition to the restoration of the grain agreement, other “nuances” and “aspects” of the termination of the war will be discussed. The Russian delegation in Riyadh, according to Ushakov, will be represented by the Chairman of the Committee of the Federation Council for International Affairs Hryhoriy Karasin and Advisor to the FSB Director Sergei Besed.
The American team was reported by Andrew Peak, Senior Director of the White House National Security Council, and Michael Anton, a high -ranking official of the State Department.
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On March 23, the US and Ukraine delegations were also held in Saudi Arabia. According to her, the Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov stated that “the conversation was constructive and meaningful – they discussed key issues, in particular in the energy sphere.”
Earlier, after contact with the US side, Kiev accepted Washington’s proposal for ceasefire without prior conditions, and Moscow only supported the moratorium on mutual strikes on energy infrastructure.
On March 23, Bloomberg, citing sources, wrote that the United States was hoping for a truce between Russia and Ukraine by April 20, both Orthodox and Catholics would celebrate Easter. But the timing can change due to large differences between the parties, according to the publication.