Zelenskyy: Talks with Russia possible on Ukraine’s terms

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Ukraine’s president has hinted at the possibility of peace talks with Russia. That’s a shift from his earlier refusal to negotiate with President Vladimir Putin that came on the eve of crucial elections in the United States. Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged the international community late Monday (Nov. 7, 2022) to “force Russia into real peace talks” and listed his usual conditions for dialogue. Those are the return of all of Ukraine’s occupied lands, compensation for damage caused by the war and the prosecution of war crimes. That is a change in rhetoric at least from a man who signed a decree in late September stating “the impossibility of holding talks” with Putin. But since his preconditions appear to be non-starters for Moscow, it’s hard to see how that would advance any talks.