Zelenskyy Says Territorial Issue 'Relevant' in Peace Talks with US Envoys

Zelenskyy calls territorial issue "relevant" in Ukraine-Russia peace talks with US envoy

Kyiv, September 7

Zelenskyy said three rounds of discussions with the US delegation had taken place and described them as substantive, expressing hope that the talks would help revive negotiations and produce a lasting peace agreement.

"Today, we had three rounds of negotiations. All of them were very substantive. I want to thank Steve and Jared for coming. And we are grateful to the President of the United States. We had good discussions," Zelenskyy said during a press conference following the talks.

"We hope that we will be able to reach arrangements with our American partners in this domain, and we hope for the support of European partners. If the war continues into the winter, we are counting heavily on the winter package, which I discussed in detail today with Steve, Jared, and our European partners. We are counting on support for air defence and the energy sector, as well as substantial volumes of American LNG and the ability to use them," he added.

The Ukrainian President said the talks covered not only the territorial question but also security guarantees, Ukraine's future and an economic plan for the country's recovery and reconstruction.

"The territorial issue remains a relevant one. I think such complex issues can only be resolved at the level of leaders. But the main thing is that today we have the opportunity to discuss everything - security guarantees, Ukraine's future, and the prosperity plan. We are talking not only about security guarantees but also about economic guarantees for Ukraine - to recover and rebuild," Zelenskyy said.

He stressed that Ukraine's military strength would remain a central component of any future security arrangement.

"Our army must be strong, and for us this is a key security guarantee. The guarantees must be strong and clear. We must not fear any future challenges," he said.

Zelenskyy also welcomed the participation of European representatives in the discussions, saying Ukraine, the United States and European partners would continue consultations.

"It is also important that European colleagues joined us for the third part of our negotiations. We agreed that Ukraine, Europe, and the United States will meet in the near future," he said.

Witkoff, speaking alongside Zelenskyy, said the US delegation had brought ideas from its earlier discussions in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin to the Kyiv talks.

"I think we made a lot of progress in Moscow. We heard new ideas. There were all kinds of other important cogent ideas that we discussed in Moscow, brought here to Kyiv," Witkoff said.

He said Washington was seeking a diplomatic rather than military solution to the conflict and credited US President Donald Trump's approach with helping resolve other international disputes.

"We seek a diplomatic resolution to this conflict, not a kinetic resolution to this conflict. President Trump, through that methodology, has helped to end at least nine conflicts out there, and it may well be more than that," Witkoff said.

Kushner said Russia's objectives would need to be considered alongside what he described as broader aspirations that could potentially be addressed after the conflict ends.

"From President Putin's perspective, I think he has certain objectives he expresses that he wants to achieve. But obviously there are different aspirations he has for his country that can also be achieved once this is concluded," Kushner said.

Zelenskyy said that the format of negotiations was less important than ensuring that dialogue continued, while thanking Witkoff and Kushner for helping restart the process.

"We may prefer certain formats of negotiations, but it's worse when there are no formats at all. I want to recognise the role of Steve and Jared in restarting the negotiation process today. It is important that the American team met with the head of Russia and today with me, and that we discussed all the possibilities. We had a trilateral meeting with the participation of the Europeans, as well as a meeting of national security advisors, and I think we will do everything possible to restore these negotiations," he said.

Zelenskyy welcomed the visit by the two US envoys in a series of posts on X, saying Kyiv was focused on securing a "dignified, reliable, and lasting peace".

"I thank U.S. President's envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner for their visit to Kyiv. We had a good conversation - several rounds already - and we will continue talking today. The main thing is to achieve peace for Ukraine - a dignified, reliable, and lasting peace. We are directing all our efforts toward this. Thank you for being here today. Good to see you," Zelenskyy said.

He also announced the next planned format of the discussions with European Partners after the initial round of talks with the US envoys.

"Next round of talks: Ukraine, the United States, and the E3 countries - France, Germany, and the United Kingdom," he said.

The Kyiv meeting followed Witkoff and Kushner's talks with Putin in Moscow.

US President Donald Trump had confirmed on Friday that the two envoys would travel to Moscow and Kyiv as part of Washington's diplomatic efforts to advance a peace proposal aimed at ending the Russia-Ukraine war.

The latest discussions mark an effort to maintain momentum in negotiations involving Washington, Moscow and Kyiv, with territorial arrangements, security guarantees, economic recovery and European participation emerging as key elements of the diplomatic process.

— ANI