Mr. Zelensky rejected all ideas of negotiations with Russia.
(Baonghean.vn) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has flatly rejected any idea of conducting peace negotiations with Russia, despite the difficult situation of the Ukrainian army on the front line.
"Is it difficult on the battlefield? Yes. But making friends or sitting at the diplomatic table with Russia now? No!" - Mr. Zenlensky said in an interview with The Sun. According to him, Russia is not ready to stop fighting, "therefore, we do not talk about peace at any cost".
In early November, NBC reported that US and EU officials had begun talks with Ukraine about potential peace talks with Russia and what Kiev might have to give up if a compromise was reached. However, President Zelensky denied this information at a joint press conference with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, instead stating that no US or EU leader had pressured Ukraine to sit down at the negotiating table with Russia.
In addition, President Zelensky stressed “fundamental” changes in the way the Ukrainian military manages casualties on the battlefield, after sacking the head of the military medical service, Major General Tatyana Ostashchenko, on Sunday evening. Zelensky’s move came after a meeting with newly appointed Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, amid criticism in Kiev over the failure of the summer offensive.
“There is very little time left to wait for results. We need to act quickly on the upcoming changes,” President Zelensky said, adding that the Ukrainian military essentially needs “a new level of medical support.”
Unnamed Ukrainian sources told the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph that they had complained about “substandard” equipment such as field kits that Kiev had purchased from China. They also claimed that poor training had led combat medics to use tourniquets when they did not need them, thus increasing the number of amputations./.