Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday renewed his call for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin to “put an end to the war”. He was addressing a press conference held at a metro station in the heart of the Ukrainian capital.
“I think that whoever started this war will be able to end it,” he said.
“From the beginning, I have insisted on talks with the Russian president,” he said. “It’s not that I want (to meet him), it’s that I have to meet him so as to settle this conflict by diplomatic means.
“We have confidence in our partners, but we have no confidence in Russia,” he added.
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During the news conference, Zelensky repeated his warning that Ukraine would break off talks if Russia killed remaining Ukrainian soldiers in Mariupol.
Russia has already declared that Ukraine’s port city of Mariupol was under its control. However, a last pocket of Ukrainian soldiers holed up inside a steel factory is resisting Russian attacks. There are civilians along with the soldiers inside the steel factory.
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On Saturday, Russia resumed attacks in Mariupol. The city is important to Russia as it links Donbas region with Russia-controlled Crimea.
“If our men are killed in Mariupol and if these pseudo-referendums are organised in the (southern) region of Kherson, then Ukraine will withdraw from any negotiation process,” said Zelensky on Saturday.
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He was ready to exchange Ukraine’s soldiers defending the city “in whatever format” to save “these people who find themselves in a horrible situation, surrounded”.
He said the “last contact” with the Mariupol soldiers had been an hour ago, he said, adding “today is one of the hardest days” since the start of the Russian siege of the city at the beginning of March.
(With inputs from agencies)
