Zelensky: Trump's 'proposals' published in the media not official US position

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said this during a briefing on Tuesday, according to an Ukrinform correspondent.

"Ukraine reaffirms its desire to achieve a quick and fair peace, and the first step toward this must be an unconditional ceasefire. Once we start talking about Crimea, about our sovereign territories, we enter the format that Russia wants -- prolonging the war, because it will not be possible to reach a quick agreement on everything. We've been fighting for 12 years. Can we reach an agreement with Russia in general? That's a rhetorical question," Zelensky said.

He said that it is impossible to reach a quick agreement with Russia without pressure from the entire world, especially the United States. He added that for Ukraine and the civilized world, this war is much more serious than it is for Putin, who aims to drag out the process to exhaust America and remove it from the negotiation table.

According to Zelensky, all rumors about the "proposals" from Trump to Ukraine to end the war are not official information or the U.S. position.

"If there is an official proposal, we will respond to it immediately as an official proposal. You will hear about it. But for now, these signals are being made in the media, and they will continue to be made. But I don't know whose they are -- Russian or American. It could be the vision of the United States. It could be different," he said.

Zelensky added that tomorrow the Ukrainian delegation, composed of senior officials, would have a mandate to discuss an unconditional or partial ceasefire.

"We are ready for this stage. We are also ready to confirm that after the ceasefire, we are prepared to sit down [at the table] in any format so that there are no dead ends," he said.

The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that the United States was awaiting a response from Kyiv, particularly regarding the recognition of Crimea as part of Russia and Ukraine's renouncement of NATO membership. Additionally, the U.S. is considering the idea of creating a neutral zone around the Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant.