"It's All About One Person": Zelenskyy Appeals to Trump with a Request
Zelenskyy noted that there are "good things in security guarantees," but he needs a concrete answer on how Ukraine's allies will react if Russia re-enters Ukraine.
Photo: Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appealed to Donald Trump with a request, telling CNN that he wants the US president to "stay on our side." He said this in an interview with CNN, according to UNIAN.
"They must stay with... a democratic country that is fighting against one person. Because this person is war. Putin is war. It's all about him. It's all about one person. And his entire country, all his people are in prison," Zelenskyy told CNN.
Asked if he believes Trump is putting enough pressure on Putin, Zelenskyy replied: "No." "If they really want to stop Putin, America is strong enough," the President said.
Zelenskyy also told CNN that security guarantees, especially the question of how Ukraine's allies will react if Russia re-enters Ukraine in the future, remain a stumbling block.
He said he is constantly told that Russia simply won't start a new war. "That's not an answer for me. I'm sorry," he said.
"There are good things in these security guarantees, that's true. But I want a very concrete answer: what our partners will be ready to do if Putin comes again. That's what Ukrainians want to hear."
According to Zelenskyy, there are also disagreements regarding the sequence of steps toward peace. Trump wants Zelenskyy to sign a peace treaty with Russia and an agreement with the United States and European countries that will provide Ukraine with security guarantees — all simultaneously, ideally at a large ceremony dedicated to ending the war.
But Zelenskyy insists that security guarantees must first be agreed upon and ratified by the U.S. Congress. He said this would give the Ukrainian people confidence that they can rely on their allies in the future, as they have too often been let down in the past.
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