U.S. President Donald Trump must realize that Russian President Vladimir Putin is an obstacle to peace efforts, President Volodymyr Zelensky said in comments reported by the Guardian on May 13.
"Trump needs to believe that Putin actually lies," Zelensky told journalists in Kyiv.
"And we should do our part. Sensibly approach this issue, to show that it’s not us that is slowing down the process."
The comments come ahead of Zelensky's planned trip to Turkey, where he invited Putin to discuss a potential ceasefire and a prisoner exchange in what would be the first direct peace negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow since 2022.
Russia, which initially proposed to launch direct peace negotiations this week, has confirmed that it would dispatch a delegation to the talks but declined to confirm Putin's participation.
"If Putin does not arrive and plays games, it is the final point that he does not want to end the war," Zelensky said.
Ukraine and its allies have called for an unconditional 30-day ceasefire starting on May 12 as the first step toward peace – a proposal ignored by Russia.
Trump has voiced optimism about the potential meeting of the two leaders and suggested he might attend as well.
The White House has grown increasingly frustrated with the stalled peace efforts as the self-imposed 100-day deadline to broker a deal has passed. The U.S. president has been critical of both Ukraine and Russia, blaming them for the deadlock in the negotiations.
After meeting Zelensky in the Vatican on April 26, Trump admitted that Putin may not be interested in peace and floated the possibility of imposing additional sanctions on Russia.
Chris York
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