Ukraine continues active negotiations with Western partners, despite accusations from the Russian Federation regarding the disruption of US peace initiatives. President Volodymyr Zelensky reported this, emphasizing that contacts with Western allies are ongoing on a regular basis.
This is reported by Kyiv24
Ongoing Contacts and Upcoming Meetings
According to the president, on January 3, Ukraine expects a visit from US national security advisors. Discussions will take place regarding developments and key documents, as well as additional security issues. Following this, a meeting is scheduled in France on January 6, where the results of the advisors’ negotiations will be formalized at the leaders’ level, and on January 7, the advisors will meet again for further alignment of positions.
On December 29, a two-hour negotiation took place in Florida between US President Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelensky. After that, the parties held telephone consultations with leaders of European countries.
Peace Framework and Position of European Partners
President Zelensky emphasized that all aspects of the peace framework were discussed during the negotiations in the US, and significant progress was made regarding the coordination of further actions. He noted that next week, delegations from Ukraine and the US plan to summarize the discussions, particularly regarding security guarantees.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who joined the joint conversation with Zelensky and Trump, confirmed that the negotiations are progressing and that security guarantees are “key to building a just and lasting peace.” He also announced an upcoming meeting of representatives from the coalition of Western countries in Paris at the beginning of January to finalize each state’s contribution to the peace settlement process.
“We are working every day… Today, there were several calls from our group Umierov with the Americans… On January 3, we plan to welcome national security advisors in Ukraine. We will discuss all documents, all developments, and additional matters. Then, the meeting on January 6 in France – everything our advisors work on will be formalized at the leaders’ level,” he told reporters.
At the same time, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Ukraine of organizing an attack on Vladimir Putin’s residence in Valdai, which, according to him, occurred on the night of December 29 using 91 drones. Lavrov also stated that Moscow may reconsider its position in the negotiations in light of this incident and has identified potential targets for retaliatory strikes.
Volodymyr Zelensky called these accusations “another lie” aimed at justifying strikes against Ukraine. Donald Trump also expressed doubt about the truthfulness of the Russian side’s statements, noting that he heard about the attack from Putin and was “very angry,” but added: “maybe” such an attack did not happen. Meanwhile, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov classified the attack as a terrorist act aimed not only against Putin but also at disrupting peace efforts.