Zelenskyy: Waiting on US, Russia Talks 03/16 07:02

   

   KYIV, Ukraine (AP) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in 
comments released Sunday that he was ready for the next round of trilateral 
peace talks to end Russia's more than 4-year-old invasion of Ukraine, but that 
it was up to Washington and Moscow to agree on where and when to meet.

   Zelenskyy said the U.S. had proposed hosting the next meeting between 
American, Ukrainian and Russian negotiating teams, which include U.S. envoys 
Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, but Moscow had refused to send a delegation.

   "We are waiting for a response from the Americans. Either they will change 
the country where we meet, or the Russians must confirm the U.S," Zelenskyy 
said in a media briefing Saturday. "We are not blocking any of these 
initiatives. We want a trilateral meeting to take place."

   The U.S. has postponed its sponsored talks between the two sides due to the 
war in the Middle East. The Iran war, which erupted on Feb. 28 following 
U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and spread across the region, has drawn the 
international spotlight away from Ukraine's plight as it strives to hold back 
Russia's bigger army.

   Speaking to journalists, Zelenskyy also warned of a "very high" risk that 
the Iran war could drain the air defense stockpiles Ukraine depends on to 
counter Russian missile strikes.

   Zelenskyy said he lacked a clear picture of available stockpiles and had 
discussed with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Friday whether 
SAMP/T systems could serve as an alternative to U.S.-made Patriot batteries for 
intercepting ballistic missiles. He said Ukraine would be "first in line" to 
test any viable alternative.

   US requested Ukrainian drone assistance

   He also appeared to push back against U.S. President Donald Trump's recent 
assertion that Washington has no need for Ukrainian drone technology.

   "No, we don't need their help on drone defense," Trump said in a Fox News 
Radio interview that aired Friday.

   Zelenskyy said Washington had reached out to Ukraine "several times" to 
request assistance for a particular country or for support for Americans, 
without giving specifics. He said the requests had come from various U.S. 
military institutions to Ukraine's Ministry of Defense and other military 
leaders.

   "All our institutions received these requests, and we responded to them," 
Zelenskyy said.

   He said he had offered Washington a defense cooperation deal last year worth 
$35 billion--$50 billion that would have given the U.S. administration access 
to technology from roughly 200 Ukrainian drone, AI and electronic warfare 
firms, with half of all production earmarked for partners, primarily the U.S.

   According to the Ukrainian leader, American military officials had expressed 
strong interest in the proposal, and Trump himself had indicated he was 
receptive.

   "We received a message from them, and directly from the president as well, 
that they are interested," Zelenskyy told reporters. "We did not sign the 
document with President Trump. I do not have an answer as to why. Perhaps it 
will happen later, but I am not sure."

   Zelenskyy warns of 'blackmail' over oil transit

   With regard to reopening the Druzhba pipeline, which until late January 
transported Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia, Zelenskyy said he was against 
allowing Russian oil to transit through Ukraine while the EU imposes sanctions 
on its sale elsewhere.

   "Why can we, in one case, tell the United States that we oppose lifting 
sanctions, while on the other hand forcing Ukraine to resume oil transit 
through Druzhba -- and at a political price that effectively pays for 
anti-European policies?" Zelenskyy said. The U.S. has temporarily eased some 
sanctions on Russian oil shipments, reflecting global concerns over sharply 
higher crude prices due to supply shortages stemming from the Iran war.

   Zelenskyy said if conditions imposed on Ukraine because of the dispute 
threatened weapons supplies, Kyiv would have no choice but to resume oil 
transit, but said he told EU partners this would amount to "blackmail."

   Oil deliveries through the Druzhba have been halted since Jan. 27, leading 
to an escalating feud between Hungary and Ukraine. The Ukrainian government 
says that a Russian drone strike damaged the pipeline's infrastructure, but 
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbn has accused Zelenskyy of deliberately 
holding up oil supplies.

   In response, Orbn vetoed a new round of EU sanctions against Russia, and is 
blocking a major 90-billion euro ($106 billion) EU loan for Ukraine until flows 
are resumed.