Ukraine responds to EU nation’s ceasefire proposal
Ukraine is not interested in Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s proposal to halt the fighting with Russia, Vladimir Zelensky’s deputy chief of staff, Igor Zhovkva, has said.
Orban arrived in Kiev on Tuesday in his first visit to Ukraine in more than a decade. Speaking to reporters after meeting Zelensky, the Hungarian PM said he had brought up the idea of a “quick ceasefire” to speed up negotiations.
“[Orban] voiced his opinion,” Zhovkva said on Ukrainian television. “This is not the first country that talks about such possible developments.”
“Ukraine’s position is quite clear, understandable and well-known,” the official continued, noting that a ceasefire “cannot be considered in isolation.”
Kiev is adamant that a settlement is only possible through Zelensky’s ‘peace formula’, he added.
The Ukrainian leader floated a ten-point program in late 2022, which included a Russian withdrawal from all territories that Kiev claims as its own, payment of reparations, and submission to a war crimes tribunal.
Moscow has said it rejects Zelensky’s demands as a non-starter and ridiculous. Last month, President Vladimir Putin presented his terms for starting ceasefire talks, including a full Ukrainian withdrawal from regions that voted to be part of Russia and legally binding guarantees that Ukraine will never join NATO.
