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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russian President Vladimir Putin rejected the US-proposed immediate, unconditional 30-day cease-fire and is dragging out the peace process because he “needs war” to continue with Ukraine.
After “immediately” agreeing to President Trump’s cease-fire proposal on Tuesday, Zelensky in a post to X said it was clear Putin “does not want any ceasefire” as he let Special Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff leave Moscow Friday without a deal in hand.
“Putin is lying about the real situation on the battlefield, he is lying about the casualties, he is lying about the true state of his economy, which has been damaged by his foolish imperial ambitions, and he is doing everything possible to ensure that diplomacy fails,” Zelensky said. “Putin cannot exit this war because that would leave him with nothing.
That fear, Zelensky said, is why Putin is doing “everything he can to sabotage diplomacy by setting extremely difficult and unacceptable conditions right from the start — even before a ceasefire.”
“Putin will try to drag everyone into endless discussions … wasting days, weeks, and months on meaningless talks while his guns continue to kill people,” he said. “But we need peace. Real peace. And we must not let the war drag on.”
Unlike Putin, Zelensky said he “immediately” agreed to Trump’s proposal calling for a full cease-fire — despite Kyiv previously only being open to one by air and sea.
The Ukrainian president acknowledged that there are terms his government will request in an eventual peace agreement, but reminded that it was Trump’s plan to stop the fighting before kicking off negotiations.
“Of course, we think about security guarantees. Of course, we think about how to control the cease-fire. But the first step is necessary,” Zelensky said of his decision to agree to the Trump proposal. “During the period of silence, we could prepare a reliable peace plan, put it on the table, discuss the details, and implement it.”
“We are ready,” he added.
To make it happen, the Ukrainian president called on “everyone who can influence Russia, especially the United States” to push Moscow to commit to Trump’s proposed cease-fire agreement.
“Pressure must be applied to the one who does not want to stop the war,” the Ukrainian president said. “Pressure must be put on Russia. Only decisive actions can end this war, which has already lasted for years.”
Trump temporarily stopped sending military aid and sharing intelligence with Ukraine in the week before its successful cease-fire talks with Kyiv on Tuesday and threatened Russia with tighter economic sanctions, but has yet to take forceful action to demand Putin agree to his proposal.
“We believe it is our partners’ responsibility to ensure that Russia is ready to end the war — not to look for reasons why it should continue for more weeks, months, or years, but to end it,” Zelensky said. “Putin will not end the war on his own. But the strength of America is enough to make it happen.”
“Strong steps are needed. Strong pressure must be applied to the only one who wants to continue this war. This is what ‘peace through strength’ means,” he added, referencing one of Trump’s favorite quotes from former President Ronald Reagan.
The Ukrainian president ended his message with a “thank you” to “everyone helping to bring peace closer – the United States, Europe, and the whole world.”
“We support our American partners and President Trump in this. We want to trust America and its President. Ukraine is ready to act quickly and constructively. And we have warned that the only side that will try to sabotage everything will not be us.”
