Zelenskyy Says Ukraine Ready for Putin Talks in Azerbaijan Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he is ready to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin in Azerbaijan during his first visit to the South Caucasus since Russia’s full-scale invasion began. Speaking alongside Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, Zelenskyy emphasized that Kyiv has already informed Baku of its willingness to engage in trilateral talks, provided Russia demonstrates readiness for diplomacy. Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine has previously held similar discussions in Turkey and Switzerland, underscoring its consistent openness to negotiated solutions. He reiterated that Ukraine would consider talks in any country except Russia or Belarus, citing Belarus’s role as a launchpad for the 2022 invasion and its ongoing support for Russia’s war effort. Aliyev affirmed Azerbaijan’s commitment to the territorial integrity of both Ukraine and Azerbaijan, recalling his visit to Kyiv in January 2022, just days before the invasion. He confirmed that the two leaders had agreed to hold their next meeting in Ukraine, highlighting the growing diplomatic engagement between the nations. The visit marks a significant diplomatic outreach by Ukraine into a region it has not engaged with at the presidential level since the war began. Azerbaijan has positioned itself as a potential mediator, leveraging its relationships with both Western and Eastern partners to facilitate dialogue. Ukraine’s leadership continues to stress that any meaningful negotiations must begin with Russia’s willingness to end its military campaign and respect Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity as defined by internationally recognized borders.
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