Ukrainian President Zelensky is open to a phone conversation with Putin
Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of Ukraine Vadim Pristayko does not rule out the possibility of Vladimir Zelensky and Russian President Vladimir Putin having a conversation over the phone, as reported by Interfax-Ukraine.
“We have many calls planned, including, possibly, with Putin. Especially when it concerns any important questions we may have. The previous president spoke with President Putin, as you remember,” he said after Zelensky met with the foreign ministers of Germany and France. On May 23, Zelensky rejected the possibility of negotiations with the Russian Federation. In response to questions posed by journalists at the iForum 2019 in Kyiv about whether or not Ukraine would negotiate with Russia, Zelensky said, “No”.
During his presidential run, Zelensky said that if he ever met with Putin, he intended to demand that all territories be returned and compensation paid to Ukraine for their seizure.
On April 29, Zelensky appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin with a request not to waste time, “trying to tempt Ukrainian citizens with Russian passports.”
“I would advise the Russian authorities against wasting their time trying to tempt Ukrainian citizens with Russian passports,” Zelensky wrote on his Facebook page.