Russia unwilling to negotiate ongoing war as it 'still feels strong': Zelenskyy

Amid the ongoing brutal war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asserted that his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, does not want to end the war as he still "feels strong" despite numerous efforts of preventing his unlawful actions. While speaking with the US corporate leaders on Wednesday, he reiterated that to negotiate with Putin, it is necessary to seize the "muscle power" of Moscow.

"For Russia to join in negotiations is simply not possible now because Russia can still feel its power," he told the corporate leaders. "We need to weaken Russia and the world is supposed to do it," he added.

Further, he appealed to all the world leaders to impose stringent sanctions on Russia for its unlawful action against his country. Zelenskyy stressed that Ukraine has been doing its part on the battlefield since the onset of the war and now the world needs to impose even tougher sanctions to weaken Russia economically. He told the business leaders, "We need to switch Russia off the global financial system completely." Putting his staunch stand over the freedom of Ukraine, the Ukrainian President said he is willing to negotiate with Russia to end the war, but "not at the expense of Ukraine's independence".

Earlier, during an address to the nation on May 21, Zelenskyy affirmed that he would consider the victory only when Putin would return all the regions seized by Russian forces to Ukraine. The Ukrainian President said he believes Russia would further escalate the war but noted that it has to return to the negotiating table. According to him, it is necessary to negotiate with Putin as thousands of civilians have been killed since the brutal war started in February this year. 

Russia ready to negotiate, says Upper House Speaker

Notably, Russia started the "special military operation" earlier on February 24 alleging Ukraine had been planning to join the NATO military alliance. However, Zelenskyy, on several occasions, clarified that Ukraine has no intention to be a Nato alliance in the "near future". Earlier last month, Moscow's upper parliament house speaker said Russia is ready to hold negotiations with Kyiv to restore peace in the region. The speaker said the Putin administration is open to talks with Ukraine and signing agreements that would lead to peace. She said that the Russian government is ready to solve the issue diplomatically and added a will for this is needed on both sides. However, she claimed that the Zelenskyy administration has shown no interest in resolving the issue. 

Image: AP