Zelenskyy Tells Media He Is Willing to Meet Putin at Miami G20 Summit | WPN World People News

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in an interview with Deutsche Welle that Ukraine is in a favorable position in negotiations and expressed his willingness to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin at the G20 summit in Miami.

During an interview with Zelenskyy in Canada on September 11, a Deutsche Welle reporter asked whether he would meet Putin if the Russian president attended the G20 leaders' summit in Miami in December. Zelenskyy gave a clear answer: “Yes, of course. We have to come. We have to meet, talk and make decisions.”

Zelenskyy added, “It’s not about what I will tell him or what he wants to tell me. It really doesn’t matter. What matters is the result. That’s it.”

Zelenskyy and Putin have not met since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Moscow has so far declined to say whether Putin will attend the Miami summit. Putin has not attended a G20 summit since 2019. Later, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on September 12, in response to reporters’ questions, that a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy at the G20 summit was impossible.

Zelenskyy’s interview with Deutsche Welle came as Ukraine prepares to enter another cold winter. He acknowledged that Ukraine has been working to cope with Russia’s intensifying attacks involving drones and missiles. He also called on European allies to provide greater support, saying Ukraine has begun working with several European companies to develop its own missile-defense systems.

U.S. negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner visited Moscow and Kyiv respectively last weekend. Zelenskyy described the visits by the U.S. envoys as a “positive signal,” rather than merely a sign of engagement with Moscow.

Zelenskyy told the United States that Ukraine currently holds a favorable position in negotiations. He estimated that Russia is losing more than 30,000 soldiers each month, meaning Moscow is paying a heavy price on the battlefield while achieving relatively little.

Another issue discussed by Zelenskyy and the U.S. envoys was the transportation of Ukrainian grain through the Black Sea. Russian attacks on Ukraine’s Black Sea ports caused Ukraine’s grain exports in August to fall 76% from the same month last year.

Zelenskyy said he discussed energy and food ceasefires with the two U.S. envoys, adding that such agreements could provide a starting point for peace.