Zelenskyy says aides to meet Trump team in New York on Friday

As part of increased mediation efforts to end the conflict with Russia, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that his administration will meet with Donald Trump’s representatives in New York.

Zelenskyy also announced the appointment of a new Ukrainian ambassador to the US, stating that former Justice Minister Olha Stefanishyna would succeed Oksana Markarova, who has been in the position since 2021, during his nightly address on Wednesday.

Zelenskyy claimed to have “described the crucial tasks” of revitalizing our embassy’s work for Stefanishyna.

According to him, “a large portion of Ukraine’s long-term security depends on its relations with America,” and that ensuring continued US weapons transfers was top of the list.

Steve Witkoff, the special envoy to US President Donald Trump, had earlier stated to the media that he anticipated discussions with Ukrainian officials this week.

The US president met Zelenskyy earlier this month, just before the summit with Vladimir Putin, the president of Russia, in Alaska.

Even so, it hasn’t been possible for Zelenskyy and Putin to meet, with Zelenskyy expressing regret on Wednesday for Moscow’s “very haughty and negative signals” regarding the negotiations.

He advocated for “pressure” to be applied to “force Russia to take real steps.”

The Ukrainian leader made the remarks as his government delegation traveled through Europe and the Middle East, stopping in Qatar on Tuesday and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday before heading to Switzerland on Thursday.

Andriy Yermak, Zelenskyy’s chief of staff, announced in a post on Telegram that he had met with the Saudi defense minister and national security adviser.

He claimed that the discussions focused on Saudi Arabia’s participation in this process and the prospects for peace in Ukraine.

No planned direct meeting

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which started in February 2022, has gotten more diplomatic in recent weeks.

However, negotiations have not made much progress despite Trump’s summit with Putin on August 15 in Alaska and subsequent White House discussions with Zelenskyy and European leaders.

Kiev has unwaveringly rejected Putin’s repeated demands that any settlement include Russian control of the Ukrainian Donbass region.

When Trump took office in January, he initially addressed Zelenskyy in a hostile manner, but he has since softened his position while expressing his growing frustration with Putin.

He has remained skeptical about US aid to Ukraine, but earlier this week he claimed that any agreement with Russia will guarantee Ukraine’s security.

He has also threatened to impose new sanctions on Moscow if the talks stall, but he hasn’t changed his mind about Russian territorial ambitions.

Trump acknowledged on Tuesday that the likelihood of a Putin-Zelenskyi meeting remained a mystery.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stated last week that a similar meeting was not planned, adding that Putin would be ready if a detailed schedule was established.

In May, Zelenskyy had previously requested Putin’s participation in talks, but the Russian leader resisted.

Fighting continues to rage.

Fighting raged on in Ukraine on Wednesday despite the diplomatic blitz.

4, 625 shelling attacks were reported by Ukraine’s General Staff in its daily update, along with 64 airstrikes and 109 guided aerial bombs.

3 891 kamikaze drones, 21 barrages from multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS), and 3 of them.

According to the statement, air strikes targeted Antonivka in Kherson, Bilohiria and Preobrazhenka in Zaporizhia, Stara Huta in the Sumy region, and Bilohiria and Preobrazhenka in the Sumy region.

Russian forces gained near Shevchenko, Bila Hora, and Oleksandr-Shultyno, according to the monitoring organization DeepState, while also gaining ground, taking Zaporizke and Novoheorhiivka in the Dnipropetrovsk region.