‘It concerns only Putin”: Yermak comments on Zelensky and NSDC’s decision on talks with Russia
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyi and the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) did not introduce a general ban on negotiations with Russia. The restrictions apply exclusively to dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin. This was stated by the head of the President’s Office, Andriy Yermak, on the air of the telethon.
Yermak explained that the decision of the National Security Council establishes the impossibility of negotiations with Putin, but this does not apply to other representatives of the Russian government. According to him, if the Victory Plan for Ukraine is ready in the future, the possibility of the presence of Russian representatives to whom this plan can be presented during the second Peace Summit is not excluded.
President Zelenskyi’s decree, which officially prohibits negotiations with Putin, was signed on September 30, 2022 and enshrines the relevant decision of the National Security Council.
The document directly states: “To establish the impossibility of conducting negotiations with the President of the Russian Federation V. Putin.”
At the same time, Putin has repeatedly called on Ukraine to cancel this decree in order to restore the possibility of dialogue. However, at the Summit of the Crimean Platform in September 2024, Zelensky emphasized that negotiations with Russia require special powers, which no one currently has.
It should be noted that President Zelensky announced the readiness of the peace formula in November 2024. This plan envisages a just end to the war and has already been presented in the United States. Ukraine also plans to hold a second Peace Summit by the end of 2024, but without direct negotiations with Moscow on a bilateral level.
