Ukraine is considering holding direct talks with Russia at a second peace summit before the U.S. presidential election in November, “people familiar with the matter” told Bloomberg News on Wednesday. The reports come after rumors that President Volodymyr Zelensky is worried about U.S. President Joe Biden’s health.
Zelensky is currently in Washington, D.C., meeting with Biden and other world leaders for the NATO military alliance’s annual summit. Ukraine is not a NATO member state, but has been a vocal pusher for membership in the alliance for years. declaration The proposal, released after informal talks between NATO countries, included a promise that Ukraine was on an “irreversible path” to membership as well as millions of dollars in military aid, but NATO has rejected Ukraine’s integration and has not laid out a specific list of demands that Kiev must meet before joining.
Zelenskiy did acknowledge in his remarks on Wednesday that Ukraine is seeking to hold a second “peace summit” to discuss an end to Russia’s all-out invasion of the country that began in 2022. Switzerland hosted the first “peace summit” in June but rejected Russia’s invitation after autocrat Vladimir Putin demanded that Kiev cede five territories occupied by Russian troops — Crimea, Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk and Zaporizhia — and abandon its NATO membership ambitions.
In his comments about the second peace summit, President Zelensky said only that he would like to hold it by the end of the year, but not necessarily before the US presidential elections, and he did not mention inviting Russia.
“Kyiv wants to convene a second round of talks, this time with Russia in attendance, to reach a fair peace agreement for Ukraine before the U.S. elections in November, according to people familiar with the matter,” Bloomberg reported. ClaimedThe newspaper described one of the “acquaintances” as a “Ukrainian government official” but did not provide further details.
The outlet explained that the rumors reflect a “sense of urgency” that Zelensky feels as opinion polls show that former President Donald Trump has defeated Biden in the election, potentially setting up a major shift in Washington’s Ukraine policy. it was fun A famously friendly relationship: Zelensky famously defended Trump against allegations of misconduct during a phone call with him. Celebrated Trump-era sanctions against Russian projects, including the now-defunct Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline.
Bloomberg did not say what Zelensky’s opinion of Biden was, but a separate report on Tuesday suggested the Ukrainian president was privately concerned about Biden.
“According to Ukrainian intelligence sources, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was among the leaders who watched the presidential debate and is concerned about the situation,” reported the Washington website Axios. While President Zelensky did not provide further details about why he was “concerned” about the situation, Biden’s performance at the debate sparked panic within the Democratic Party that the elderly president may not be fit to hold the country’s highest office for the next four years, as his answers to questions at the debate were deemed incomprehensible, confused or incoherent.
That Zelensky’s concerns emerged in an Axios report is significant because the Ukrainian president has used the outlet in the past to complain more directly about Biden. In a June 2021 interview with Axios, Zelensky said he was “unpleasantly surprised” by Biden’s decision to lift sanctions on the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project linking Russia to Western Europe.
“Nord Stream 2, for me, remains… we understand that this is a weapon, a real weapon, and I speak openly about it,” Zelenskiy said at the time. “It is a weapon that has fallen into the hands of the Russian Federation, and I cannot possibly understand, and certainly cannot expect, that the ammunition for this weapon would come from a great country like the United States.”
Zelensky predicted that lifting sanctions would encourage Russia to attack Ukraine, and Putin launched a full-scale invasion of the country seven months later.
As for negotiations with Russia, the Ukrainian government has steadfastly rejected such talks since the early days of the full-scale invasion. But Zelensky hinted at the possibility of another “peace summit,” but did not mention Russia’s participation. Speaking on Wednesday at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Institute in Washington, Zelensky said: Said Ukraine was preparing to “host a second peace summit this year, a stronger and truly decisive one based on the peace formula. We need the support of the United States.”
Zelenskiy did not specify whether “this year” meant a summit before or after the November elections.
The first summit in Switzerland did not see any concrete actions from the parties involved, but shortly afterwards the Ukrainian government already hinted at the possibility of a second summit by the end of the year, but did not specify whether it would take place before the elections.
“In some countries, [offering to host]”And there is a good chance that such a summit will take place somewhere in the Southern Hemisphere,” presidential aide Igor Zohkva said. Said The Interfax news agency reported in June.
Biden sent an envoy but did not attend the first peace summit in Switzerland, instead attending a fundraiser hosted by actor George Clooney, who dramatically rejected Biden’s candidacy less than a month after the event.
Responding to rumors about a possible invitation to the Ukraine peace summit, the Russian government on Thursday denied the possibility of taking part.
“We are aware that the Kiev regime and its Western leaders are trying to ‘rehabilitate’ the failed ‘peace summit’ and hold a similar event. [and] “We invite Russia” – Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin Said “We will not accept these ultimatums and will not take part in any such ‘summit’,” he said in comments to Russian news agency RIA Novosti.
Galuzin argued that the Ukrainian government has “deliberately ignored other efforts to resolve the Ukraine crisis,” an apparent reference to Putin’s call for Ukraine to surrender five territories it occupies in exchange for an end to the invasion.
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