President Zelensky opposes the ceasefire.
(Baonghean.vn) - According to Ria Novosti, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky on January 11th flatly opposed the ceasefire, stating that it would only benefit Russia.
"Suspending the ceasefire on the Ukrainian battlefield does not mean an end to the conflict. It does not lead to political dialogue with the Russian Federation or with anyone else," President Zelensky said.
The Ukrainian leader emphasized that a halt to hostilities would primarily benefit Russia.
At the same time, President Zelensky stated that, despite all efforts, Europe does not have much time left to make a decision on supporting the Ukrainian armed forces.
At a press conference on January 10, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova downplayed the importance of the "secret meeting" between Ukraine and its allies in December 2023 regarding the peace plan, as the conflict with Russia was about to enter its third year.
According to Maria Zakharova, this is just part of a strategy by the Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's administration and the West to draw attention to and promote Kyiv's "peace formula."
In the fall of 2022, President Zelensky signed a decree implementing the decision of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine to prohibit talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Moscow has repeatedly expressed its willingness to resolve the issue peacefully, but Kyiv has refused to even consider that possibility. At the G20 summit in September 2023, President Zelensky declared that “there will be no Minsk-3.”
Commenting on this statement, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov assessed that such words "completely confirm" Kyiv's reluctant stance on negotiations.