On the eve of the third anniversary of Russia’s invasion, Volodymyr Zelensky declared on Sunday that he was prepared to step down as president of Ukraine if that would mean that Kyiv would be accepted into the NATO military alliance.
Before the new US president meets Vladimir Putin, Zelensky, who has received harsh criticism from the new US administration, said he wanted to meet him.
Any deal that would end the war on the front of Zelensky’s request would require the United States to join NATO, but the Washington-led alliance has shown reluctance to do so.
“If there is peace for Ukraine, if you really need me to leave my post, I am ready. … I can exchange it for NATO”, Zelensky told a Kyiv news conference.
Since Trump and US officials met last week in Saudi Arabia for their first high-level discussions in three years, Zelensky and Trump have been at odds with one another. The action irked Ukrainian and European leaders who were not present at the meeting and undermined the West’s policy of isolating the Kremlin.
In a series of verbal attacks over the last week, Trump has branded Zelensky a “dictator”, falsely claimed Ukraine “started” the war. He also claimed, contrary to independent opinion polls, that Zelensky was unpopular at home.
Zelensky said he was prepared to test his popularity in elections once martial law is overturned in Ukraine and that he did not feel “offended” by Trump’s statements.
“One would be offended by the word ‘ dictator, ‘ if he was a dictator”, Zelensky told journalists.
“I very much want from Trump an understanding of each other”, he said, adding that “security guarantees” from the US president were “much needed”.
Trump should meet with him before any summit with Putin, according to the Ukrainian leader. There had been “progress”, he added, on a deal to give the United States preferential access to Ukraine’s critical resources.
READ ALSO:  , Trump Brands Zelensky A ‘ Dictator ‘ In Bitter Clash
‘Promising’

Earlier, the Kremlin hailed dialogue between Trump and Vladimir Putin — whom spokesman Dmitry Peskov called two “extraordinary” presidents — as “promising”.
According to Dmitry Peskov, a spokesman for the Kremlin, “It is important that nothing prevents us from achieving the political will of the two heads of state.”
It’s unclear whether the US actions will bring Moscow and Kyiv closer to a truce, despite Zelensky’s demand for long-term security assistance and Trump’s suggestion of a peace deal.
Moscow has repeatedly rejected NATO membership for Ukraine, and Peskov ruled out any territorial concessions as part of a settlement.
According to Peskov, “the people decided to join Russia a long time ago,” referring to Russian-staged elections held during the offensive that Kyiv, the West, and other international observers labeled as false.
“No one will ever sell off these territories. That’s the most important thing”, he said.
On Sunday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for a Ukraine peace deal that respects the country’s “territorial integrity”.
 , ‘God willed it ‘

Putin, in his own comments on the eve of the anniversary of his “special military operation” on Ukraine, said “God” was behind his “mission” to defend Russia.
“Fate willed it so, God willed it so, if I may say so. He told service members who have fought in Ukraine that a task as difficult as it is honorable, defending Russia, has been assigned to us and your shoulders.
Moscow’s army launched a record 267 attack drones at Ukraine overnight, Kyiv’s air force said.
Nearly all of them were shot down or intercepted by Ukraine, with no serious injuries reported.
Russia has embraced the diplomat squabfight between Trump and Zelensky as its troops advance on the battlefield and carry out massive aerial attacks.
“Zelensky insults the head of state in inappropriate ways. He does it repeatedly”, Peskov said.
“No president would tolerate that kind of treatment. So his (Trump’s) reaction is completely understandable”.
Following discussions between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Riyadh, Russian officials announced via Russian TASS news agency that they would meet in the coming week.
This week, Emmanuel Macron, the president of France, and Keir Starmer, the prime minister of Britain, will make the case for supporting Ukraine.
And in Brussels, the head of the European Council, Antonio Costa, announced a special European summit on the Ukraine war for March 6.
In a post on X, Costa wrote, “We are living a defining moment for Ukraine and European security.