BERLIN: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he is willing to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin at a G20 summit in Miami in December if both leaders are invited, as US efforts to revive negotiations to end the Russia-Ukraine war intensify.
Asked by Deutsche Welle whether he would meet Putin at the summit, Zelensky replied: “Yes, of course. We have to come. We have to meet, to speak, and make decisions.”
He said the priority would be achieving an outcome rather than exchanging statements.
“It’s not about words. What I will tell him or what he wants to tell me, it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter. Matters only result. Result matters. That’s it.”
US Pushes For Talks
Washington has stepped up efforts to restart peace negotiations after years of stalled diplomacy.
US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner visited Moscow and Kyiv last weekend as part of the latest diplomatic push.
Putin and US President Donald Trump also held an hour-long phone call last week that the Kremlin described as “extremely frank” and constructive.
Zelensky, speaking to Deutsche Welle on Friday, welcomed the US envoys’ visit, particularly their decision to travel to both Moscow and Kyiv.
“It’s respect to our people,” he said.
G20 Becomes Diplomatic Test
The United States holds the G20 presidency this year, with the group comprising 19 countries alongside the European Union and African Union.
Russia’s participation in G20-related meetings has already caused discomfort among Ukraine’s European allies. Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov attended a G20 meeting in North Carolina in early September.
A Russian diplomat also said on Saturday that Moscow would send officials to a G20 energy meeting in Houston next week.
Zelensky’s willingness to meet Putin at the December summit could therefore turn the G20 gathering into an important diplomatic opportunity for direct contact between the two leaders.
