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Zelenskyy: US Security Agreement Ready 01/26 06:26
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that a U.S. security guarantee
document for Ukraine is "100% ready" after two days of talks involving
representatives from Ukraine, the U.S. and Russia.
(AP) -- President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Sunday that a U.S. security
guarantee document for Ukraine is "100% ready" after two days of talks
involving representatives from Ukraine, the U.S. and Russia.
Speaking to journalists in Vilnius during a visit to Lithuania, Zelenskyy
said Ukraine is waiting for its partners to set a signing date, after which the
document would go to the U.S. Congress and Ukrainian parliament for
ratification.
Zelenskyy also emphasized Ukraine's push for European Union membership by
2027, calling it an "economic security guarantee."
The Ukrainian leader described the talks in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the
United Arab Emirates, as likely the first trilateral format in "quite a long
while" that included not only diplomats but military representatives from all
three sides. The talks, which began on Friday and continued Saturday, were the
latest aiming to end Russia's nearly four-year full-scale invasion.
Zelenskyy acknowledged fundamental differences between Ukrainian and Russian
positions, reaffirming territorial issues as a major sticking point.
"Our position regarding our territory -- Ukraine's territorial integrity --
must be respected," he said.
Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed a Ukraine settlement with U.S.
President Donald Trump's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner during marathon
talks late Thursday. The Kremlin insisted that to reach a peace deal, Kyiv must
withdraw its troops from the areas in the east that Russia illegally annexed
but has not fully captured.
Zelenskyy said the U.S. is trying to find a compromise, but that "all sides
must be ready for compromise."
Negotiators will return to the UAE on Feb. 1 for the next round of talks,
according to a U.S. official. The recent talks covered a broad range of
military and economic matters and included the possibility of a ceasefire
before a deal, the official said. There was not yet an agreement on a final
framework for oversight and operation of Ukraine's Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power
Plant, which is occupied by Russia and is the largest in Europe.
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