American President Donald Trump warned his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, this Friday, February 13, that he has to “move” or risk losing “a great opportunity” to reach a peace agreement with Russia.
“Zelensky will have to move. Russia wants to close a deal, and Zelensky will have to act. Otherwise, he will miss a great opportunity,” the US President told journalists at the White House in Washington.
The Republican politician also included, in his warnings to the Ukrainian leader, that elections in Ukraine “must be held before the summer”.
Elections in Ukraine remain dateless under martial law in place since the Russian invasion in February 2022.
Several international media outlets reported in recent days that Zelensky would announce elections in the spring, under pressure from Washington.
However, the Ukrainian President reiterated on Thursday that there will be no elections until a ceasefire with Moscow and sufficient security guarantees for Kiev are reached to prevent potential new Russian aggression.
Security guarantees are one of the main topics in ongoing trilateral discussions between negotiators from Kiev, Moscow and Washington, along with the future of Ukrainian territories claimed by Russia.
After two trilateral rounds in Abu Dhabi, Moscow and Kiev confirmed today that their negotiating teams will meet again, under the mediation of the United States, in Geneva on the 17th and 18th of February.
Before that, the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, is expected to meet with Zelensky in the coming days, on the sidelines of the Security Conference taking place in Munich, Germany.
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