Ukraine wants to negotiate a clear timeline for the return of its territories and people from Russia at a four-way summit on the Donbass conflict, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky told reporters on Nov. 19.
“I would like to have results,” Zelensky told reporters after his meeting with Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis on Tuesday. “We need to agree on the return of our territories. I’m talking first about some clear timelines.”
Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Vadym Prystaiko met with his German counterpart Heiko Maas, saying during a joint press conference, “We are going to the Normandy meeting with open ideas, an open mind, ready to accept a reasonable compromise.”
Maas said Germany and France would do everything to help reach a permanent solution to the conflict and added that it was time for “Russia to step up to the plate” to help end the conflict.
The conflict between Ukrainian forces and Russian-backed forces has already killed more than 13,000 people.
Before the summit some confidence building measures took place as Russia returned to Ukraine ships that it seized about a year ago, and the two countries exchanged prisoners.