Zelensky: Ukraine Ready for 'De-escalation' if Russia Reciprocates

He said, 'If this can become a first step towards de-escalation, that is, a halt to Russian strikes on our vital infrastructure, and a halt to the strikes we launch in response, Ukraine is ready to support de-escalation.'

Earlier, US President Donald Trump said that Russia and Ukraine had agreed to refrain from targeting energy facilities.

Trump believed that the Russian-Ukrainian war, 'not Iran,' was causing a sharp rise in fuel costs for Americans, adding that he had asked Zelenskyy not to allow attacks on Russian diesel refineries.

However, Zelenskyy said that 'the Russians feel the pressure from our precise responses targeting the Russian economy, which is being used to serve the war effort.'

He continued, 'So far, no one has seen any real desire from Russia to move towards ending the war.'

He added, 'But if our American partners manage to extract a real, sincere, and long-term willingness from Russia to end this war that is claiming lives, Ukraine will, in turn, take steps towards de-escalation.'

The Kremlin has not yet commented on these statements.

In recent months, both Russia and Ukraine have escalated long-range strikes targeting civilian sites, such as factories, warehouses, energy infrastructure, and ports, as well as ships in the Black Sea.

These attacks, which have resulted in numerous civilian casualties, have caused a fuel crisis and damaged the two major e-commerce companies, Wildberries and Ozon, in Russia.

In Ukraine, the attacks have halted a significant portion of agricultural exports and caused severe damage to the metals and retail sectors.

- 'Ongoing Campaign' -

Russian strikes are also increasing against the country's railway network, according to the head of the Ukrainian railway operator, who told Agence France-Presse on Monday, following a strike on a passenger train linking Kyiv and Warsaw, two kilometers from the border with Poland.

Oleksanr Pertsovskiy, CEO of Ukrzaliznytsia, said, 'An ongoing campaign of strikes has begun against the railway network', noting that the attacks 'are increasing in intensity rapidly', and 'every month and every week is usually worse than the previous one'.

In the absence of air travel, which has been suspended since the war began in 2022, the train network is a vital link in Ukraine, used by civilians, foreign diplomats, and soldiers, as well as for transporting military equipment and cargo shipments.

On Sunday, Trump stated that Zelenskyy should 'stop' attacking Russia's diesel fuel refineries because it is causing a shortage.

During a visit to Ireland, Trump urged Zelenskyy to target 'other objectives, not diesel fuel, because it causes a shortage', adding that 'it's not happening because of (the conflict) in the Middle East, but because of what is happening between Russia and Ukraine.'

Russia, one of the world's major oil exporters, is also launching attacks on fuel stations in Ukraine.

In justifying the Russian attacks, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov accused Kyiv of being behind the escalation, saying, 'Russia was not hitting everything that moved (before). It only started doing so after the Ukrainians opened Pandora's box.'

US envoys Steve Wittkoff and Jared Kushner visited Moscow and Kyiv two weeks ago to revive diplomatic efforts that have been stalled since the beginning of the year.

Zelensky, who plans to meet Trump in New York at the end of September, said he is counting on resuming direct talks with Russia during this month, after the Russian parliamentary elections scheduled for September 18-20. For its part, the Kremlin has not ruled out a meeting in October.