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Ukraine war: Zelensky open to joining Putin-Trump talks in Hungary if invited
The Ukraine president criticised pro-Kremlin EU member Hungary as a venue for Putin-Trump talks, insisting on neutral locations for discussions
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he would be ready to join Russian President Vladimir Putin and US counterpart Donald Trump at their summit in Hungary if he is invited.
Trump and Putin said they would meet in the Hungarian capital, possibly in a matter of weeks, as the US leader continues to try to broker a peace deal to end the three-and-a-half-year war, triggered by Russia’s 2022 invasion.
“If I am invited to Budapest – if it is an invitation in a format where we meet as three or, as it’s called, shuttle diplomacy, President Trump meets with Putin and President Trump meets with me – then in one format or another, we will agree,” Zelensky told reporters in remarks released on Monday.
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The Ukrainian president criticised the choice of Hungary, which has a terse relationship with Kyiv and is seen as the most Kremlin-sympathetic member of the European Union.
“I do not believe that a prime minister who blocks Ukraine everywhere can do anything positive for Ukrainians or even provide a balanced contribution,” Zelensky said, referring to Hungarian leader Viktor Orban.
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Kyiv has said it is ready to join a three-way meeting between Zelensky, Putin and Trump in a number of neutral countries, including Turkey, Switzerland and the Vatican.
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