Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday said that Kyiv is ready for a 30-day ceasefire with Russia.
Moscow is yet to announce its position on the ceasefire proposal made by the United States, which is mediating the negotiations alongside Saudi Arabia.
Zelenskyy said in a video statement that the talks had been “good and constructive”.
The Ukrainian president said that his representatives had shared a three-point proposal with the US aimed at stopping missile strikes, bombs and long-range drone attacks, “real confidence-building measures” that “primarily means the release of prisoners of war and detainees” and the return of Ukrainian children allegedly forcibly transferred to Russia.
“During today’s talks, the US side proposed taking an even bigger first step – a 30-day full interim ceasefire, not only stopping missile, drone, and bomb attacks, not only in the Black Sea, but also along the entire front line,” Zelenskyy said.
He added: “Ukraine is ready to accept this proposal – we see it as a positive step and are ready to take it. Now, it is up to the United States to convince Russia to do the same. If Russia agrees, the ceasefire will take effect immediately.”
After Zelenskyy’s statement, the Donald Trump administration lifted its suspension of intelligence sharing and military aid for Ukraine, the Associated Press reported.
On March 4, Zelenskyy said that he was ready to work under Trump’s “strong leadership” to end the war with Russia.
He had added that Kyiv was also ready to sign an agreement on minerals and security with Washington. This controversial deal will give the US access to Ukraine’s rare earth minerals.
Zelenskyy’s statement had come four days after Trump accused him of “gambling with World War III” during a public confrontation at the White House. Trump had told Zelenskyy to come back for talks “when he is ready for peace”.
The tense meeting led to the collapse of the minerals deal between the two nations and had created uncertainty about American military support for Ukraine amid the war with Russia.
Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, which triggered the deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II.
Also read: Understanding the Trump-Zelensky faceoff: A fraught minerals deal with vague US commitments
Trump’s U-turn on doubling tariffs on Canadian metal
On Tuesday afternoon, Trump went back on a threat to double tariffs on steel and aluminum from Canada to 50%, Reuters reported. This came just hours after the White House announced the higher tariffs.
Trump’s change of stance came after Doug Ford, the premier of Canada’s Ontario province, suspended his plans for a 25% surcharge on electricity. Ontario supplies electricity to more than one million homes in the US.
However, the Trump administration said that the original 25% tariffs would take effect on Wednesday as planned, with no exceptions.
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