Ukraine interested in both 30-day ceasefire and comprehensive truce - Ukraine’s ex-president

He shared his opinions on Espreso TV.

"I can speak based on Ukraine's interests, and I must emphasize that, without a doubt, Ukraine is interested in both a 30-day ceasefire and a comprehensive, full-on truce. By the way, I want to clearly emphasize that a ceasefire and a truce are absolutely different things. All viewers must have a clear understanding that these are very distant concepts. Do I believe in the possibility of a ceasefire? Yes, I believe such an agreement will be reached. Do I believe in a truce? No. I think we are still very far from this. And I think Putin has a clear understanding that this is in Ukraine's interest, but not in Russia's. Therefore, I was surprised when the Ukrainian delegation started conditioning the decision proposed by the Americans for a 30-day ceasefire with additional terms. We started modifying it: 'Let’s make it only at sea, or only at sea and energy facilities.' Ukraine is interested in a ceasefire on land," he said.

Petro Poroshenko noted that he was surprised by the discussion on the types of objects that could be targeted. In his opinion, it would be more reasonable to specify the types of weapons that would be prohibited during a potential ceasefire.

"For some reason, we started discussing which specific objects would be subject to the ceasefire and which would not. Energy facilities will be, but hospitals won't? I believe we should proceed with other principles. And this is what I advocated for when we held negotiations with Putin in the Normandy format in 2014-2015. There, we didn’t focus on types of objects, but on types of weapons. For example, if we sign a 30-day ceasefire, ballistic missiles should be completely prohibited. Why? Because they fly beyond the front-line positions. Second: cruise missiles should be prohibited. Third: we should not use strike drones with a range exceeding 25–30 kilometers. Fourth, fifth, sixth. But, please, we have not yet achieved a truce or a ceasefire on land. Artillery, multiple launch rocket systems, even guided aviation bombs with a range of 50-60 kilometers—that’s the second stage. Ukraine must immediately take action. This is very easy to control, there is a very clear position, and today we have to arm the Americans with the understanding that this will be something that will work," said the fifth president of Ukraine.

• Yuri Ushakov, aide to Russian leader Vladimir Putin, announced that U.S. and Russian delegations will meet for negotiations in Riyadh on Monday, March 24.
• President Zelenskyy announced that Ukrainian and U.S. technical teams will meet in Saudi Arabia on Monday, March 24.
• At the same time, special representative Keith Kellogg stated that the U.S. plans to hold separate meetings with Ukrainian and Russian representatives in Saudi Arabia, aiming to organize indirect talks.
• On March 21, Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Heorhiy Tykhyi stated that the Ukrainian delegation would meet with the American one in Saudi Arabia, rejecting the possibility of talks with the Russians.
• On March 22, the Washington Post reported that negotiations between Ukrainian and Russian delegations on a ceasefire will take place in Saudi Arabia. These talks will not be direct, meaning the Ukrainian delegation will not meet with the Russian delegation.