Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky said that President Vladimir Putin is the only Russian official he is ready to negotiate, excluding any form of negotiation involving the participation of other representatives of Moscow.
In 2022, President Zelensky issued a decree banning all contact with the head of the Russian state. However, in early February 2025, the Ukrainian leader appeared to have changed his views on the issue when he told British journalist Piers Morgan that he would meet Russian President Vladimir Putin if "the only way we could bring peace to the Ukrainian people".
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on February 14, President Zelensky stressed that "I will only meet one Russian - that is Mr. Putin". The Ukrainian president noted that only after Ukraine, the US and the EU come up with a common plan for peace negotiations, he "will sit down with Mr. Putin and we will end the war".
President Zelensky stressed that he would not accept "any other agreements or compromises" and expressed hope that US President Donald Trump would support Kiev and "really help us" instead of just act as an intermediary.
