Factual. Independent. Impartial.
Support AAP with a free or paid subscription

Zelenskiy says lasting peace realistic ahead of talks

Russia has not struck any energy infrastructure in the last day, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says. (EPA PHOTO)

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy says that it is realistic to ​achieve a dignified and lasting ⁠peace, ahead of the next round of peace talks with Russian and US officials due ‌this week ​in Abu Dhabi.

Speaking after ‍discussions with his negotiating team, Zelenskiy said the Ukrainian delegation would also hold bilateral meetings with ​US officials during ‌the two days of talks in Abu ​Dhabi, which are due ‍to start on Wednesday. 

"We consider the bilateral security ​guarantees ​document with the ​United States to ​be complete, and we anticipate further substantive work on documents related to recovery and economic development," Zelenskiy said.

US President ​Donald Trump's ⁠special envoy Steve Witkoff ‌will travel ​to Abu ‍Dhabi for the talks on Wednesday ​and Thursday, ‍‍a White
House ​official ​said ​on ​Monday.

The Kremlin also confirmed that the next round of talks will take place later this week in Abu Dhabi, the Russian news agency Interfax reported on Monday.

The meeting had originally been planned for Sunday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in Moscow.

However, Peskov said further scheduling by the three delegations had been necessary. 

"The second round will now take place on Wednesday and Thursday in Abu Dhabi," he said.

Earlier on Monday, Zelenskiy said Russia had not carried out any targeted missile or drone strikes ‍on Ukrainian energy infrastructure in the last 24 hours although energy facilities in frontline areas ​have come under fire.

Zelenskiy's statement highlighted the ⁠limitations of a short-term energy truce that Russia agreed to last week at the request of Trump.

Zelenskiy said energy repair crews had managed to restore energy facilities damaged when high-voltage power lines malfunctioned over the weekend, on top ‌of the damage ​caused by frequent Russian attacks. 

"The (energy) system is operating stably. However, given the extremely ‍cold weather and the impact of Russian strikes, all challenges remain serious," Zelenskiy said on the Telegram app.

Russia and Ukraine said last week they halted strikes on each other's energy ​infrastructure but disagreed on the timeframe for ‌the truce.

The Kremlin said Trump had made a personal request to Russian President Vladimir Putin to refrain ​from striking Kyiv until February 1. 

Zelenskiy said the truce was supposed to ‍last for a week, starting on January 30.

A Russian drone strike on Sunday killed 12 miners at a coal mine in the Ukrainian Dnipropetrovsk region, ​officials ​said. 

with DPA

License this article

Sign up to read this article for free
Choose between a free or paid subscription to AAP News
Start reading
Already a member? Sign in here
Top stories on AAP right now