Zelenskyy Predicts Putin’s Fear to Meet Face-to-Face
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that he does not believe that Russian President Vladimir Putin will be brave enough to come to Istanbul for direct talks with him, although he does not completely rule out this possibility.
The Gaze reports on this with reference to Zelenskyy's interview with Spiegel, as reported by European Pravda.
The Ukrainian president spoke about his telephone conversation with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, during which they discussed his trip to Ankara, from where the two of them are ready to leave Istanbul if Putin arrives.
At the same time, Zelenskyy added that he did not really believe in the Russian ruler's arrival.
"First of all, I don't really believe that Putin is personally capable of a meeting. I think he is afraid. Although, if he feels a serious blow to his economy, will his people, the Russians, feel it too? So I think there is still a chance that he will come," he said.
According to Zelenskyy, he and Putin must ‘somehow find a format to end the war’.
"Undoubtedly, there are things that we have to agree on, and the technical details can be discussed in a different format. When I meet with Putin, it should end in a political victory - a ceasefire or a prisoner exchange, all for all. And if he does not come, it means that he does not want a political victory - neither for his society nor for ours, by the way," he said.
Zelenskyy said he was ready to speak with the Russian leader in person on Thursday in Istanbul, and afterwards Trump said he did not rule out a visit to Turkey on 15 May.
At the same time, the Kremlin said that the Russian side continues to prepare for talks in Istanbul on 15 May and has no further comment.
As The Gaze reported earlier, European foreign ministers issued a united call for peace in Ukraine on Monday, with several top diplomats urging Russian President Vladimir Putin to engage seriously in negotiations. Their appeals came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy reiterated his willingness to meet Putin and warned that time was running out to avoid more bloodshed.