Ukraine Not Ready for Negotiations with Russia

Ukraine is not in a strong enough position today to negotiate with Russia to end the conflict, according to Andriy Yermak, head of President Volodymyr Zelensky's office.

“Ukraine must reach the point of negotiations when we are strong enough to speak on equal terms,” he said in an interview with the Ukrainian publication Public.

According to him, Ukraine strives to receive an invitation to NATO and to secure clear guarantees for a non-resumption of the conflict within two to three years.

Earlier, an advisor to Zelensky's chief of staff, Mykhailo Podolyak, had allowed for negotiations with Russia, clarifying that Kyiv does not want them to occur on Moscow's terms. He expressed the opinion that for Ukraine's interests to be safeguarded in possible negotiations, the West must “increase pressure on Russia.”