Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he sees no point in either meeting Vladimir Putin in Moscow or holding a phone call with him. According to the president, the leaders need to meet if they genuinely want to end the war, with a ceasefire as the first step.
Zelenskyy made the remarks while answering journalists’ questions in Berlin.
The president said Ukraine is not inviting Putin to Kyiv, but stressed that this is not simply because Russian forces came to Ukraine uninvited in 2022.
“We are not inviting Putin to Kyiv. They came to us in 2022 without an invitation. But there is no point in inviting Putin to Kyiv not because of that, but because he will not come. Just as there is no point in inviting me to Moscow,” Zelenskyy said.
He described Russia’s actions as destructive and said no one would support a trip by the Ukrainian president to Moscow.
Zelenskyy was also skeptical about the prospect of a phone call with Putin. In his view, Moscow could use such contact as an opportunity to avoid a face-to-face meeting later.
“It would be a very formal, dry phone conversation in which I would once again listen to a history lecture from the leader of the Russian Federation instead of hearing about real steps on how to actually end the war,” the president said.
Zelenskyy stressed that if the sides genuinely want to end the war, they must meet and take the first step — a ceasefire.
Zelenskyy discusses aid to Ukraine with Bundestag President
During his visit to Berlin, Zelenskyy also met with Bundestag President Julia Klöckner.
The sides discussed support for Ukraine’s energy sector and additional protection against Russian missile and drone attacks. Zelenskyy said the situation in Ukraine’s energy system remains difficult, with serious power outages affecting many regions.
They also discussed financial support for Ukraine next year. According to Zelenskyy, Germany’s federal budget provides for €11.6 billion in aid to Ukraine.
Earlier, Glavnoe in Ukraine reported that Zelenskyy had said he was ready to meet Putin in Turkey. He said the main objective of such a meeting would be a full and unconditional ceasefire backed by a reliable monitoring mechanism.
The president stressed that issues involving territories, security guarantees and ending the war require decisions at the leaders’ level, and that Ukraine would not accept agreements about its future reached without its participation.
