Zelensky says energy strike ceasefire could be established quickly
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A fire in a location given as Odesa, Ukraine, after a Russian attack damaged energy infrastructure in this screengrab from a video released in March.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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KYIV – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on March 19 that a halt on energy strikes in the war with Russia could be established quickly, and that Ukraine would respond in kind if Moscow violated the terms of the ceasefire.
After speaking to US President Donald Trump
That list could include not only energy, but also rail and port infrastructure, he said, a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to Mr Trump and agreed to pause attacks on energy infrastructure.
“I understand that until we agree (with Russia), until there is a corresponding document on even a partial ceasefire, I think that everything will fly,” Mr Zelensky said, referring to drones and missiles.
The Ukrainian leader, who looked tired as he spoke to reporters during an online briefing, described his phone call with Mr Trump as “probably his most substantive and positive” talks yet and added that he had not felt under pressure.
The readout contrasted with the acrimonious optics of Mr Zelensky’s last meeting with Mr Trump on Feb 28, which was meant to lead to them signing a minerals deal but instead spiralled into a shouting match.
Asked at the briefing if he still wanted Mr Trump to visit Ukraine, Mr Zelensky said that he did and that he believed it would be helpful for the US President in his efforts to halt the war.
Mr Zelensky said Ukrainian and US officials could meet next in Saudi Arabia on March 21, March 22 or March 23 to discuss technical details.
The Ukrainian leader said he wanted to understand how the partial ceasefire would be monitored, though he added that he thought it would be successful if the US set out to do it.
A statement by the US presidential administration said earlier that Mr Trump suggested to Mr Zelensky that the US could help run, and possibly own, Ukraine’s nuclear power plants and energy infrastructure.
Mr Zelensky said he and Mr Trump discussed only the vast Russian-occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in south-eastern Ukraine during their phone call.
He added that he told Mr Trump that Kyiv would be ready to discuss US involvement in modernising and investing in the nuclear plant if it is returned to Ukraine.
Mr Zelensky said he believed Mr Putin would not agree to a full ceasefire while Ukrainian troops remained in Russia’s western Kursk region.
Kyiv’s forces launched a surprise incursion into the region in August 2024, but have since been pushed back to a tiny sliver of land during a multi-stage operation by Russia.
Mr Zelensky also said that Ukraine had received new supplies of several F-16 fighter jets, but he declined to say exactly how many or when exactly the delivery had happened. REUTERS
