US-led peace talks between Ukraine and Russia had been under way in the United Arab Emirates but were placed on hold amid the Iran war.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Sunday that Kyiv is ready for the next round of trilateral peace talks to end Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, but that it was up to Washington and Moscow to decide where and when to meet.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT
Zelenskyy said that Washington had proposed to meet in the US next week, but that Russia did not want to meet there.
“We are waiting for a response from the Americans. Either they will change the country where we meet, or the Russians must confirm (a meeting in) the US,” Zelenskyy said in a media briefing on Saturday.
“We are not blocking any of these initiatives. We want a trilateral meeting to take place.”
Peace talks had been under way in the United Arab Emirates earlier this year, but were put on hold after the Iran war erupted following joint US-Israeli strikes on Iran late February.
As Iran began launching retaliatory strikes, the conflict quickly spread across the wider Middle East, which Zelenskyy feared could draw global attention away from Russia's war against Ukraine.
The Ukrainian leader also warned that Iran could drain the air defence stockpiles Ukraine depends on to counter Russian missile attacks.
Eleven countries have requested Kyiv’s help in countering Shahed-type drones amid the Iran war and Tehran's ongoing attacks against the Gulf states, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said last week.
He explained that Ukraine is willing to help, but only those who help Kyiv “protect the lives of Ukrainians and the independence of Ukraine.”
Zelenskyy also pushed back against President Donald Trump's recent statement that the US did not need Ukraine's help on drone technology. Zelenskyy said, however, that Washington had reached out to Kyiv "several times" to request assistance, without offering details.
Zelenskyy said he wanted to sign a deal worth $35–50 billion (€30.5-43.6 billion), but did not understand why the US did not sign the document.
Russia continues attacks on Ukraine amid stalled peace talks
Meanwhile, Russia continues to launch near-daily attacks on Ukraine.
"Over the past week alone, the Russians struck Ukraine with 1,770 attack drones, more than 1,530 guided aerial bombs, and 86 missiles, including more than 20 ballistic ones," Zelenskyy wrote on X.
Overnight into Sunday, Russia launched 97 drones, according to Ukraine’s Air Force, which said it shot down 90 of them. Five drones hit targets at five locations, while debris from intercepted drones fell in two other areas.
In the Kherson, Kharkiv and Zaporizhzhia districts, five people were killed and dozens injured, local media reported, citing local authorities. Meanwhile in the Sumy and Dnipropetrovsk districts, at least six people were injured, reports added.
A Russian drone strike was also reported in the Chernihiv district, which had targeted a checkpoint, killing one person, according to Head of Chernihiv City Military Administration, Dmytro Bryzhynskyi.
"Unidentified explosive devices dropped from the UAV are still detonating; the appropriate services are working at the scene," he wrote on Telegram.