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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced his readiness to join the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin , scheduled for Budapest . He made this statement in an interview with the American television channel NBC News on Sunday, October 19.
"I'm ready. I told US President Donald Trump this at the White House meeting. I'm ready," Zelenskyy emphasized, responding to a reporter's question about his desire to personally travel to the Hungarian capital to participate in the negotiations. The president noted that achieving a just and lasting peace requires the participation of both sides in the conflict . "How can there be any agreements without us?" he added.
When asked whether the Ukrainian leader was prepared to give up part of the country's territory to end the war with Russia, Zelenskyy replied: "If we want to stop this war and urgently, diplomatically, move to peace negotiations, we need to stay where we are and not give Putin anything extra."
The Ukrainian president also stated that Ukraine is currently "not losing the war, but Russia isn't winning either." He claimed that Moscow, sensing its weakness on the battlefield, is intensifying airstrikes against Ukrainian civilians. "That's why he (Vladimir Putin) is really intensifying airstrikes: he wants an energy catastrophe this winter," Zelenskyy noted.
Earlier, White House Press Secretary Caroline Levitt told reporters that Washington was counting on Zelenskyy's participation in the summit. Before his meeting with Zelenskyy in Washington on October 17, Trump noted that the Ukrainian leader would likely not attend Budapest, but the US president would "stay in touch with him."
After meeting with Zelenskyy, Donald Trump wrote on the social media platform TruthSocial that the Russian and Ukrainian armies "should stop where they are." "Let both declare victory, let history decide! No more shooting, no more deaths, no more massive and unsustainable expenditures," he added.
On the evening of October 16, the day before Zelenskyy's visit to the United States, Trump held a two-hour phone call with Putin. Following the conversation, he announced plans to meet with the Russian president in Budapest. Preparations for the event are expected to take place at a meeting of the US and Russian delegations over the coming week.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó stated that the Russian president will not face arrest under an International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant during his visit to Budapest. "We respectfully welcome President Vladimir Putin and will ensure his arrival in Hungary, successful negotiations, and subsequent return home. There is no need for any approval from anyone," Szijjártó emphasized, calling the meeting a "Budapest summit."
Meanwhile, European Commission spokesperson Anita Hipper noted that, despite the current sanctions against Russia and the frozen assets of the Russian Central Bank, Vladimir Putin is "effectively" not banned from entering the European Union. "The meeting has not been confirmed, and we will not comment on hypothetical scenarios, but there are no entry bans as such," Hipper emphasized, adding that the same applies to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
