President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, speaking at a press conference with Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten, said he expects a trilateral meeting between Ukraine, the United States and Russia to take place between 6 and 10 November.
"Preparations are under way for a meeting in a trilateral format, which is scheduled in Abu Dhabi, and we expect the meeting to take place by 10 November," the President said.
The President expressed hope that the meeting would not be disrupted by likely escalation processes in the Middle East, which are being widely discussed at the moment.
"We can change it (the venue of the meeting, - ed.). But I think we should not change the dates. We need to hold the meeting, I hope, between 6 and 10 November. We are waiting for the American side; we hope they will be ready with all the answers after the elections, and after 4 November we will have a date," he said, adding that the agenda is to prepare a trilateral meeting of leaders.
According to Zelenskyy, one or two technical-level meetings may be enough to prepare for the meeting.
Earlier, President Zelenskyy said that Ukraine wants to hold a meeting of technical teams with the United States and Russia before the Russian, American and Chinese leaders meet in a trilateral format.
Background
- Vladimir Putin proposed to Donald Trump holding a trilateral meeting with the Chinese leader during a phone call on 9 October — the same call after which the US President unexpectedly announced a relaxation of oil sanctions against Russia and an agreement to buy more than a million tonnes of diesel from it.
- According to The Wall Street Journal, the aim of the summit is to discuss ending the war in Ukraine on terms favourable to Russia. Neither Volodymyr Zelenskyy nor European representatives are being offered a place at the summit.
- Trump backed the idea of such a summit. The meeting could take place in China.