Zelenskiy is ready to negotiate with Russia but first 'needs to be able to defend himself'

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Photo: Getty Images

On June 4, new Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy affirmed his country's goal of joining the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and said he was ready to negotiate with Russia to end the conflict in eastern Ukraine.

According to a VNA correspondent in Europe, speaking at a press conference with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at NATO headquarters in Brussels (Belgium), Mr. Zelenskiy stated: "The strategic direction that Ukraine pursues to become an official member of the EU and NATO remains unchanged."

"This is a priority in our foreign policy," he asserted.

Mr. Zelenskiy also said that Russia's military power is "a big challenge," but he wants to restore the peace agreement reached in Minsk (Belarus) on resolving the conflict in Eastern Ukraine.

He stressed that Ukraine is ready to negotiate with Russia and is ready to implement the Minsk agreements, but "first of all Ukraine must be able to defend itself."

Mr. Zelensky, 41 years old, won an overwhelming victory in the Ukrainian presidential election on April 21.

In his inauguration speech, Mr. Zelensky emphasized that the most important thing now is to end the conflict in eastern Ukraine, and pledged to restart the peace talks with the parties according to the Minsk agreement.