Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accuses Putin of manipulating ceasefire proposal

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused Russian President Vladimir Putin of manipulating the ceasefire proposal, stating that Moscow is crowding the idea with preconditions designed to delay or derail progress.
In a post on X, Zelenskyy said, «Right now, we have all heard from Russia Putin's highly predictable and manipulative words in response to the idea of a ceasefire on the front lines--at this moment he is, in fact, preparing to reject it.» He argued that while Ukraine has accepted the US-backed proposal for an unconditional ceasefire on land, at sea, and in the air, Russia continues to create obstacles to avoid a resolution.

Zelenskyy asserted that Putin is reluctant to admit his desire to continue the war and is instead using tactics to complicate negotiations. «Of course, Putin is afraid to tell President Trump directly that he wants to continue this war and keep killing Ukrainians.

That's why, in Moscow, they are surrounding the ceasefire idea with such preconditions that it either fails or gets dragged out for as long as possible. Putin does this often--he doesn't say 'no' outright, but he drags things out and makes reasonable solutions impossible. We see this as yet another round of Russian manipulation,» he said.

He stressed that Ukraine is not imposing any conditions that would complicate the process and that only Russia is delaying progress.
«There was a US proposal for an unconditional ceasefire--in the air, at sea, and on the front lines. We in Ukraine accepted this proposal.

We have heard from the American side that there is readiness to organise monitoring and verification. And this is absolutely feasible--with American and European capabilities. And during the ceasefire, to prepare