Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky emphasized that U.S. involvement in negotiations regarding the end of Russia’s war against Ukraine is extremely important. According to him, the United States must remain not only a supplier of weapons but also an active participant in diplomatic efforts to achieve peace.
This is reported by Kyiv24
PURL Program and the Role of the U.S.
Volodymyr Zelensky noted that the PURL (Prioritized Ukraine Requirements List) program allows Ukraine to receive the types of weapons that are unavailable from European partners. The president stressed that even if the U.S. reduces its involvement in the negotiation process, it is essential to fight for continued support from Washington, including pressure on Russia and providing security guarantees for Ukraine.
“I believe that it is unacceptable (the plan if the U.S. withdraws from the negotiation process but continues to supply weapons under the PURL program – ed.). We need to fight for the U.S. to continue helping, to maintain pressure on Russia, and for us, security guarantees are important. Europeans are strong partners, but PURL is an opportunity to buy from the U.S. exactly the weapons that, unfortunately, the Europeans do not have, so we must continue this in any case,” he said in response to a question from Radio Liberty.
Funding for PURL and NATO’s Position
The president thanked NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte for his call to state leaders to find additional financial resources for the PURL program, as its implementation requires about 15 billion euros annually. According to Zelensky, Ukraine currently lacks about 800 million euros, although this amount has already decreased thanks to the Netherlands, which allocated 700 million euros to support the program. The president expressed hope for further assistance from the U.S. and noted that Ukraine, together with its partners, is actively seeking additional financial resources to ensure PURL.
This summer, the U.S. and NATO signed the PURL agreement, which provides for the supply of American weapons to Ukraine funded by European countries under NATO coordination.
Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump stated that Volodymyr Zelensky had not yet familiarized himself with the American peace proposals, but emphasized the positive reception of these proposals among his circle. Trump also noted that Russia is generally satisfied with this plan, although “Russia would prefer to have all of Ukraine.” After this, Zelensky reported that the negotiating parties still have disagreements regarding the territories discussed within the framework of the peace initiative mediated by the U.S.