Good opportunity to end conflict: Ukraine president

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Friday that he saw a good chance to end the war with Russia after Ukraine accepted a US proposal for a 30-day interim ceasefire and Moscow said it would only agree if certain conditions were met.

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“Right now, we have a good chance to end this war quickly and secure peace. We have solid security understandings with our European partners,” Zelensky said on X. “We are now close to the first step in ending any war — silence,” he said, referring to a truce.

Earlier, Zelensky also accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of sabotaging diplomatic efforts to secure peace in Ukraine. “He is now doing everything he can to sabotage diplomacy by setting extremely difficult and unacceptable conditions right from the start even before a ceasefire,” Zelensky said in a post on X.

Speaking to reporters, Zelensky urged the US and other allies to apply pressure on Moscow, reiterating his belief that Russian President Vladimir Putin will delay reaching a ceasefire as long as possible.

“If there is a strong response from the United States, they will not let them play around. And if there are steps that Russia is not afraid of, they will delay the process,” Zelensky told media.