Zelenskyy announces first Ukraine-US-Russia trilateral talks in UAE from today
Ukrainian leader says trilateral meeting in UAE could pave way to end war, warns Europe is too reliant on the US for security and long-term defence strategy
A trilateral technical-level meeting involving Ukraine, the United States, and Russia is scheduled to take place on January 23 and 24 in the United Arab Emirates. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced this during a panel discussion following his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday (January 22).
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He said this would mark the first trilateral engagement between Ukraine, Russia, and the US and expressed hope that it could pave the way toward ending the war. “Tomorrow and the day after tomorrow we will have a trilateral meeting. It’s better than not having any dialogue,” Zelenskyy said.
His remarks came after an hour-long meeting with US President Donald Trump, who described their discussion as “good.” Zelenskyy said the Ukrainian team met with Trump on Thursday, after which the US delegation would travel to Russia.
“Our guys are meeting with the Americans today, then the Americans are meeting with the Russians tomorrow, tonight — when, I don’t know. Maybe Putin is sleeping. You said no one knows what’s in his head,” Zelenskyy said.
The comedian-turned-politician said the “Russians should be ready for compromises.” He added, “You know, everyone should be ready, not just Ukraine, and this is important for us. So we’ll see what the results will be.”
However, the Ukrainian leader did not clarify the format of the talks or whether the officials would hold direct negotiations.
Zelenskyy questions NATO’s future
Zelenskyy also said Europe is overly dependent on the United States for its security and argued that the continent needs its own armed forces capable of defending itself.
“Europe needs united armed forces, forces that can truly defend Europe today. Europe relies only on that belief that if danger comes, NATO will act, but no one has really seen the alliance in action,” he said.
He questioned a scenario in which the US might not come to Europe’s aid. “Right now NATO exists thanks to the belief that the United States will act, that it will not stand aside and will help,” Zelenskyy said. “But what if it doesn’t? Believe me, this question is everywhere in the minds of every European leader.”
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The Ukrainian president said Ukraine could help NATO sink Russian ships near Greenland. “We know what to do. If Russian warships are sailing freely near Greenland, Ukraine can help. We have the expertise and weapons to ensure not one of those ships remains. They can sink near Greenland just as they do near Crimea,” Zelenskyy said.
“We know how to fight there if we were asked and if Ukraine were in NATO. But we are not. We would solve the problem with the Russian ships,” Zelenskyy said.