Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has stated that he would like to see a “strong response” from the United States if Russian President Vladimir Putin is unwilling to hold a bilateral meeting with him.
Zelensky reiterated that Ukraine is ready to engage in direct talks with Putin.
“But what if the Russians are not ready? The Europeans raised the issue. If the Russians are not ready, then we would like to see a strong response from the United States,” he said.
Ukraine has previously expressed hope that the U.S. would punish Russia with additional sanctions if Moscow does not show serious willingness to end the war.
Zelensky added that it was unclear what concessions Moscow would be willing to make regarding territory and that Budapest, as the proposed location for future talks between the two countries, was “challenging.”
