President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that negotiations with Russia are possible only if Russian troops leave the illegally occupied territory of Ukraine. He said this after a meeting with the UN Secretary-General and the President of Turkey on August 18, 2022, in Lviv.
Source: The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy
According to Ukraine’s President, Turkish President said during the negotiations that the food initiative for the export of Ukrainian grain provides a “diplomatic window” for agreements on the future end of the war.
“I expressed my opinion to Mr President of Turkey that there is no faith in the Russian Federation. I believe that Russian weapons are in this “window”. I am very surprised that they [Russians – ed.] are ready for some kind of peace. People who kill, rape, on a daily basis, hit our civilian cities, and civilian infrastructures with cruise missiles – cannot want peace. So first, it seems to me, they should liberate our territories, and then… Then there will be later,” Zelenskyy said.
At the same time, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said that he “keeps faith that the war will end at the negotiating table.”
See also: Turkish President and UN Secretary-General met with Ukrainian President in Ukraine’s west