- A trilateral meeting between Ukraine, US, and Russia will occur on January 23-24 in the UAE
- Zelensky said the talks are the first of their kind and hopes they will help end the war
- He claimed Ukraine could help NATO combat Russian ships near Greenland if it were a member
A trilateral meeting at the technical level between Ukraine, US and Russia is set to be held on January 23 and 24 in the United Arab Emirates. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky made the announcement during a panel discussion after his speech at the World Economic Forum in Davos on Thursday.
He noted that this would be the first trilateral meeting between Ukraine, Russia, and the US and hoped that this would lead to an end of 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 comments come after an hour-long meeting with US President Donald Trump, who said that they had a "good" discussion.
Zelensky said that the Ukrainian team had a meeting with Trump on Thursday, after which the US team will 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," Zelensky said.
The comedian-turned-politician argued that the "Russians should be ready for compromises". He said, "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 speak about the format of the talks or whether the officials would negotiate directly.
Zelensky Says Europe Reliant On US
Zelensky also said that Europe is too reliant on the US for its security and said that the continent needs its own armed forces that can defend 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 when the US will not help.
"Right now NATO exists thanks to the belief that the United States will act, that it will not stand aside and will help," Zelensky said.
"But what if it doesn't? Believe me, this question is everywhere in the minds of every European leader."
"If Ukraine Were In NATO"
The Ukrainian president stated that Ukraine can 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 stated.
