Vladimir Zelensky has said Kiev does not need mediators such as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in potential peace talks with Russia Read Full Article at RT.com
The Ukrainian leader has said he would not allow the Hungarian prime minister to mediate potential peace talks with Russia
Ukraine does not need mediators such as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in potential peace talks with Russia. Kiev intends to maintain direct contacts with US President-elect Donald Trump, Vladimir Zelensky has claimed.
Orban has proposed a Christmas ceasefire between Ukraine and Russia, describing it as a last-ditch attempt to mediate a diplomatic resolution of the conflict. He floated the idea last week to both Kiev and Moscow, as well as to Trump, with whom he has a close relationship, when they met at US president-elect's Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. Zelensky, however, has rejected the proposal.
Speaking at a public meeting in Lviv on Tuesday, Zelensky said “We do not need countries … like Hungary, like Prime Minister Orban [to be a mediator]. It will not work, I will not let him in, and people like him.”
“We are a strong country; we have shown this on the battlefield … Who else in Europe has such an example? No one. Does Orban have such an army? No. How will he put pressure on [Russian President] Putin – a joke, a smile?”Zelensky asked.
He further said that he expects “direct contacts” with Washington after Trump’s inauguration, which will show which points of his ‘peace formula’ the new president supports.
Orban spoke with Putin by phone two days after his meeting with Trump, after which, the Kremlin announced readiness to discuss a Christmas Day truce and large-scale prisoner-swap between Moscow and Kiev. The Russian government sent its ideas for a POW exchange to the Hungarian embassy in Moscow, according to the Kremlin.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto then revealed that the Ukrainian leadership turned down a phone call request from Orban and did so in a manner that is “quite unprecedented in diplomacy.”
Orban later acknowledged that Zelensky had “clearly rejected” the proposed ceasefire,accusinng the Hungarian leader of trying to “boost his personal image at the expense of [EU] unity” in support of Kiev.
Trump has repeatedly promised to end the Ukraine conflict within a day of taking office. He met with Zelensky this month in Paris along with French President Emmanuel Macron for talks centered on the Ukraine crisis. Trump, who was reportedly reluctant to meet Zelensky, said afterwards that he wanted the hostilities to end as soon as possible.
Moscow has repeatedly stressed that it’s ready to resume the negotiations. It has urged Kiev to accept the new realities “on the ground.” Putin cited the complete withdrawal of all Ukrainian forces from all Russian territories as a key prerequisite for peace talks.
