There will be no end to the Ukraine-Russia conflict unless Putin meets

Key Takeaways:

• Without meeting with Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy asserted that negotiating an end to the conflict in his country would be impossible.

On Monday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that negotiating an end to the conflict in his country would be impossible without meeting with Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin.

According to Zelenskyy, a meeting like this could discuss the future of occupied Ukrainian territory, but it would take more time to resolve the issue.

He also reiterated his earlier statement that Ukraine would not be able to join NATO.

"I believe that until we meet with the Russian Federation's president...you cannot truly understand what they are prepared to do to end the war as well as what they are ready to do if we are not prepared for this or that compromise," Zelenskyy stated in the interview.

For nearly a year, Zelenskyy has sought a meeting with Putin. Still, the Russian leader has refused, instead of demanding that the Ukrainian president end his country's "civil war" with Russian-backed separatist territories.

Since Russian troops entered Ukraine last month, Zelenskyy has issued a series of increasingly urgent calls for peace talks.

Last week, he called for a quick meeting for Russia to "limit the losses caused by its mistakes."

'A compromise must be found,'

Thousands of people have been killed, and nearly a quarter of Ukraine's 44 million people have been forced to flee their homes due to Russia's assault on the country. According to Germany, refugees could reach ten million in the coming weeks.

"I am prepared to raise the issue of occupied territories in a meeting with Russia's president, but I am confident that no solution will be found at this meeting," Zelenskiy said in his interview.

He stated that several conditions must be met before such matters can be addressed, including a cease-fire, troop withdrawal, and security guarantees.

"There is a cease-fire, and troops are withdrawn when people try to stop a war." "The presidents meet, agree on troop withdrawals, and there are security guarantees of some sort," he explained. "One way or another, compromises must be found to ensure our security."

Ukraine is well aware, according to Zelenskiy, that it will not be admitted to NATO at this time. "They understand that they would not like to fight with Russia and therefore cannot take us in," Zelenskiy said. We have to accept it and say, 'OK, other guarantees.'"