Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in the United States on Sunday (22) to present the details of his “victory plan” to end the war with Russia, which began in February 2022, to US President Joe Biden and the US Congress on Monday (23).
(RFI) Zelensky will also present his proposals to US presidential candidates, Democrat Kamala Harris and Republican Donald Trump. The visit comes after months of intense fighting. Moscow has advanced rapidly in eastern Ukraine and Kiev has held areas of Russia’s Kursk region.
The Ukrainian government wants authorization from Western countries to use long-range missiles in attacks against Russia. Zelensky hopes to get the go-ahead after the meeting scheduled for next Thursday (26) with Biden. According to him, this would probably change “the course of the war”.
This Sunday, the Ukrainian leader visited a munitions factory in the state of Pennsylvania. “I began my visit to the United States by expressing gratitude to all the employees of the plant,” he posted on the X social network. “This is the kind of place where we feel that democracy can prevail,” he said.
The Ukrainian president will continue his visit to the United States with engagements in New York and Washington. Believing that “this fall will be decisive for the future” of the war, Zelensky announced that the United States would be “the first country to see details” of his proposals for ending the conflict with Russia.
“This war can only end with a just peace through international efforts. Ukraine’s victory plan will be on the table of all our allies,” he declared. “The main goal is to strengthen Ukraine and protect our people,” Zelensky said at the X.
UN General Assembly
Zelensky’s trip coincides with this week’s United Nations General Assembly in New York. At the event, the Ukrainian president will try to put pressure on other leaders over the use of weapons on Russian territory.
“Neither the United States nor the United Kingdom have given us permission to use these weapons against any target and at any distance on the territory of Russia,” Zelensky said on Friday night. On Saturday, Russia announced that it would not take part in the second summit on Ukraine proposed by Kiev in November, after a first edition in June in Switzerland.
“The summit will have the same goals: to promote Zelensky’s ‘illusory formulas’ as a basis for resolving the conflict, to gain the support of the majority of the world and to present Russia with an ultimatum to capitulate,” Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in a statement.
Kiev maintains its demand for a “just” peace that would see Russian troops leave the country’s internationally recognized borders, including the Crimean peninsula. Moscow said it would only consider “serious proposals” that take into account “the situation on the front that ‘reflects’ the geopolitical reality”.
Russian President Vladimir Putin explained in June that Moscow would only agree to peace talks if Ukraine renounced its sovereignty over five of its regions, which are partially or totally occupied by Russia, which is demanding their annexation.
The latest Russian attacks in Ukraine left one dead and twenty-three wounded in the southern regions of Kherson and Zaporijia, local authorities announced on Monday.
With information from AFP