Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Tuesday he had postponed his visit to Saudi Arabia planned for Feb 19 and that talks on how to end the war with Russia could not be held behind Ukraine’s back.
Mr Zelensky said that Kyiv was not invited to the meeting, but he had been due to travel to Saudi Arabia on Feb 19.
“We want no one to decide anything behind our backs… No decision can be made without Ukraine on how to end the war in Ukraine,” Mr Zelensky told reporters during a visit to Turkey, where he held talks with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan.
Zelensky said that he postponed his trip to Riyadh until March 10 as he did not want “any coincidences”.
As the war with Russia approaches its three-year mark next week, Mr Zelensky said that neither Kyiv nor Moscow could win on the battlefield.
US and Russian officials held talks Tuesday in Riyad. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Russia is ready to start a “serious process” on ending the war in Ukraine.
“Today is the first step of a long and difficult journey but an important one,” said Mr Rubio, adding he left the meeting convinced that Moscow was “willing to begin to engage in a serious process to determine how quickly and through what mechanism can an end be brought to this war”.
Mr Zelensky said that to ensure a just peace, the United States, Ukraine, and Europe should participate in the talks on security guarantees for Kyiv. Reuters
