At talks on 10–11 November, Russia rejected Ukraine’s proposal to begin an energy ceasefire. At the negotiations in the UAE, Russian representatives said they had no mandate to decide the issue. Ukraine sees that there is not only no mandate, but also no desire, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said at a meeting with journalists on 13 November.
No other ceasefire was discussed in detail either, because the Russians said it should be decided with their president. Ukraine then once again proposed a leaders’ meeting, but it is clear that the ceasefire is not supported by the Russian leader himself.
“Our team said: ‘That’s exactly why we proposed it: if everything is decided by Putin, then let’s have a leaders’ meeting.’ In the end, it was agreed that the American team would fly to Putin and discuss it. As of today, things are as they are. A ceasefire is not supported personally by Putin,” the president said.
He added that at the previous talks the US raised another topic — changing Europe’s security architecture after the war. Volodymyr Zelenskyy considers this dangerous. In his view,
“But I believe it was precisely this agenda that the Americans used to draw the ‘Russians’ in, because the ‘Russians’ are interested in exactly this — revising the security architecture, at least in Europe. My concern is underscored and confirmed by the dangerous signals that came from Putin the day before regarding borders and so on. The fact that Putin wants to change borders in Europe is a fact. I am sure this lies at the heart of his concept of revising security guarantees in Europe. This is dangerous because, in my view, it is precisely such things that start wars or escalations. I contacted the Nordics and other Europeans and said they need to take this very seriously, and they all are taking it exactly that seriously. The order of actions should be as follows: a ceasefire, an end to the war in Ukraine, security guarantees for Ukraine,” he said.
Zelenskyy believes Putin will talk about Finland, Sweden, Hungary and the presence of American troops in the Baltic states.
“If Putin assumes that Ukraine will have neutrality fixed in place, that will not happen. Right now we are not in NATO anyway. If neutrality generally means that we are not in NATO, we are already in that status. So what, then, will work for our long-term security? If they assume that we will not be in the EU, then indeed — we will be; this is being said at all levels. For now, Ukraine is not in any of the alliances. And entrenching neutrality means you change your country’s Constitution, and Ukraine will not go down that path,” the president stressed.