Zelenskyy says ready to meet 'enemy' Putin if it ends war but 'won't be kind to him'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that if sitting down with his “enemy” Vladimir Putin will bring an end to the war, he will agree to engage in direct talks with the Russian president.

Talking to British journalist Piers Morgan, Zelenskyy said, “If that is the only set-up in which we can bring peace to the citizens of Ukraine and not lose people, definitely we will go for this set-up,” adding that he would require “other participants” to join the meeting.

“If people believe we must move to the diplomatic track, and I believe we are ready to move to the diplomatic track, there must be the US, Europe, Ukraine and Russia [at the talks],” the Ukrainian president said.

He further said that while he is up for a discussion with his Russian counterpart, he “will not be kind to him” as Putin is “his enemy”.

Zelenskyy said in the interview that the Russia-Ukraine war has killed 5,100 people and injured 390,000 others and estimated that Moscow’s losses stood at 350,000 dead with “many” Russians missing in action.

‘Empty words’

Meanwhile, the Kremlin on Wednesday dismissed Zelenskyy’s statement that he was ready for direct talks with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin to end fighting as “empty words”.

“So far this cannot be seen as anything but empty words,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists.

Peskov said that “readiness has to be based on something. It cannot be based on a legal ban on such talks for Zelenskyy,” repeating a frequent argument from Russia that Zelenskyy cannot speak to Putin after signing a decree banning negotiations with him in 2022.

The spokesman also reiterated Russia’s frequent claim that Mr. Zelenskyy is not a legitimate president. Ukraine has a ban on holding elections during martial law.

“Zelensky has big problems de jure in Ukraine. But even despite that we remain ready for talks,” Peskov said.

With inputs from AFP