Ukraine must have US security guarantees as part of any plan to end the war with Russia, its president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said, as he accused the Kremlin of being “afraid” of talks after it called him an illegitimate leader with no right to sign any peace deal.
Mr Zelenskiy said it was “critical” to end Europe’s biggest war since 1945 but that European security pledges alone would not deter Moscow’s military, as a strike by Ukrainian long-range drones set fire to Russia’s fourth-biggest oil refinery.
Mr Zelenskiy told Fox News that US president Donald Trump must play a key role in efforts to end nearly three years of all-out war between Kyiv and Moscow, because Russian president Vladimir Putin fears him and Europe takes its lead from Washington.
“I stressed that Putin doesn’t fear Europe. European security guarantees alone will never be enough. Every European leader I’ve spoken to looks to Trump. Without strong US security commitments, everything else is weak,” Mr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday.
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“I am confident that if President Trump wants to, he can force Putin into peace. If the US applies pressure on Putin through the Global South – including China and India – President Trump can negotiate for them to do the same,” he added.
“We want a diplomatic resolution. Not because we fear the battlefield – we don’t fear the Russian army. It’s not as strong as it pretends to be. But we value lives ... Ending the hot phase of the war is critical.”
Mr Putin says Ukraine must cede to Russia five regions that are now partly or fully occupied, and permanently abandon its bid to join Nato. Ukraine says security guarantees are vital to any deal and Nato membership is the best one available, and that it could regain control of occupied areas over time through diplomacy, not war.
“We will never recognise Russian occupation. Diplomatic solutions are preferable – fewer casualties, fewer losses. But Putin doesn’t want peace. He wants to prolong the war,” Mr Zelenskiy said.
Mr Putin has said he will talk to Mr Trump about Ukraine and other issues, but told Russian state television on Tuesday that he would not negotiate directly with Mr Zelenskiy, whom he says is an illegitimate leader because his five-year term in office would in normal circumstances have expired last year; however, Russia’s invasion in 2022 prompted the introduction of martial law, under which elections are banned.
“Negotiations can be held with anyone, but because of [Mr Zelenskiy’s] illegitimacy, he has no right to sign anything. If he wants to take part in talks, I will delegate people to conduct such talks. But the issue is the final signing of documents,” Mr Putin said.
Mr Zelenskiy signed a decree in 2022 banning Ukrainian officials from negotiating with Mr Putin, whom Kyiv regards as a war criminal, but he has indicated that the decree would not prevent him, as president, from talking to Russia’s autocratic ruler of 25 years.
“Putin once again confirmed that he is afraid of negotiations, afraid of strong leaders,” Mr Zelenskiy said in response to Mr Putin’s claims about his legitimacy. “Now, there is a chance to achieve a real peace, but it is Putin who is doing everything in his power to either continue large-scale killings or secure a pause in order to continue hybrid attacks while preparing for a new full-scale invasion.”
Kyiv’s military is on the back foot on the battlefield but continues to deliver drone strikes against defence and industrial targets deep inside Russia; several drones hit Russia’s fourth-biggest oil refinery early on Wednesday, setting fire to the Kstovo facility some 800km from Ukraine.
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