Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he plans to meet again with President Trump on the sidelines of the United Nations (UN) General Assembly next week, as Russian strikes against Ukraine continue despite pressure on the Kremlin to come to a peace deal.
The two leaders will discuss security guarantees, backed by both Kyiv and its allies in Europe. Trump will address the U.N. crowd on Tuesday, while Zelensky will do the same on Wednesday.
“I would like to receive the signals, how close we are to understanding that the security guarantees from all partners are those what we need,” Zelenskiy told reporters in Kyiv on Friday, according to Bloomberg News.
“We have prepared the basis for security guarantees that Europe is ready to adopt, taking into account that the United States of America will be there,” the Ukrainian leader continued. “We have had many discussions, including among the leadership of our armies and general staffs with the Europeans and the Americans.”
Zelensky also said that a separate meeting between the first ladies of the U.S. and Ukraine is also planned for next week.
Ukraine has pushed for the security guarantees to fend off potential future Russian incursions, while the Kremlin has said that any involvement of Western servicemembers would be considered a threat to Moscow.
Trump has pushed to end the three-and-a-half-year war in Eastern Europe, but the effort seems to be at an impasse as Russia has continued to level Ukraine with aerial attacks. Russian President Vladimir Putin has largely rejected a bilateral summit with Zelensky but did invite him to meet in Moscow.
Russia’s latest overnight attack on Ukraine, consisted of 580 drones and 40 missiles, targeted at least nine regions, including Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia and Kyiv, according to Zelensky. The aerial barrage killed at least three people and injured dozens of others.
The Ukrainian leader said a missile strike in Dnipro with cluster munitions also hit an apartment building.
“Every such strike is not a military necessity but a deliberate strategy by Russia to terrorize civilians and destroy our infrastructure,” Zelensky wrote Saturday morning on social platform X. “That is why a strong international response is needed. Ukraine has proven it can defend itself and Europe, but for a reliable shield, we must act together: strengthen air defense, increase weapons supplies, and expand sanctions against Russia’s military machine and the sectors that finance it.”
On Friday, three Russian MiG-31s flew into Estonian airspace for 12 minutes, according to Estonia’s minister of foreign affairs, Margus Tsahkna.
“Such violation is totally unacceptable. The Government of Estonia has decided to request NATO Article 4 consultations,” Estonian Prime Minister Kristen Michal said.
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