(MENAFN) A senior Ukrainian official stated that the conflict with Russia should be paused with a ceasefire along the “current contact line,” emphasizing that subsequent negotiations should build on this foundation.

When asked about US President Donald Trump’s remarks suggesting a halt along battle lines, Ukraine’s First Deputy Foreign Minister Sergiy Kyslytsya said: “I don't know exactly the context of what is, according to you, a quotation from President Trump, so I am not going to comment on that. What I would like to bring your attention to is that I think that the position of President Trump and of Ukraine is the same -- the war should stop with a ceasefire at the current contact line and then all negotiations should depart from the current contact line, and it is up to the leadership of Ukraine and the leadership of the Kremlin to discuss further territorial issues.”

Regarding potential concessions to Russia, Kyslytsya noted, “We have already made many concessions, so I think that it's not up to the Ukrainian government to please the Russian government.”

Addressing reports of tense discussions between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, he described the talks as “difficult but constructive” and pointed to subsequent US sanctions on Russia as proof of continued support. “It's up to the Russian government to get serious after all and to engage in the negotiations and peace process. I think that some of the media reports are totally blown out of proportion and some media are into looking for hype.
Yes, the conversations we have -- and not only with the United States, but with many other partners -- are very difficult, but I would be surprised if we would have easy conversations given the complexity of the ongoing conflict.”

“So the conversation was difficult, but it was constructive and it was productive by the end of the day, and we saw a couple of days after the meeting in the White House the introduction of the sanctions by the US administration, which supports my statement.”

Kyslytsya emphasized that US backing remains vital for Ukraine, describing Washington as “a fundamental actor” in efforts to end the war and protect civilians. Commenting on the canceled Trump-Putin meeting last month, he said, “I think that the fact that the meeting, the announced meeting, between Trump and Putin had been cancelled testifies to the fact that Washington is losing patience with the whole exercise of manipulation by Moscow and the tactics of procrastination and never-ending delays instead of getting serious and getting engaged in a negotiation process and bringing the end to this war.”

On defense cooperation with the US, he described expectations for Tomahawk missiles and Patriot air defense systems as realistic. “I think that the negotiations are well underway and we are realistic. We are having not only political conversations, we also have conversations with the governments and with the producers of weapon systems, and Ukraine itself produces increasingly more and more weapons of its own. So I think that the process may not be as fast as we all hoped for, but it is on the right track.”

Kyslytsya also praised Türkiye’s diplomatic role, noting its ability to maintain channels with both Kyiv and Moscow. “Türkiye has been a Ukrainian partner and Türkiye has hosted only this year three meetings in Istanbul, and we do really appreciate the fact that Foreign Minister (Hakan) Fidan was present himself and he did his best to facilitate the process of interaction between the delegation of Ukraine and the delegation of the Russian Federation.”

He further highlighted the involvement of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, stating: “The leadership of President Erdogan as well is very prominent and the contacts between President Zelenskyy and President Erdogan are regular and they are full of substance. So it's not only the exchange of pleasantries. We discuss very important things that are very relevant to the post-conflict arrangement that we all hope to achieve.”

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