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Ukraine leader proposes meeting with Putin

AFP
19 Feb 2022 23:51:57 | Update: 20 Feb 2022 00:05:16
Ukraine leader proposes meeting with Putin
This handout picture released on February 19, 2022 by the press service of the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces in an unknown location of Ukraine shows Ukrainian soldiers taking part in exercises on February 18, 2022 — AFP Photo

Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky on Saturday proposed a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin aimed at averting an invasion by Russia of Ukraine.

"I do not know what the Russian president wants. For this reason, I propose that we meet," Zelensky told an international security forum in Munich.

Meanwhile, Ukraine's army said that two of its soldiers died in attacks on the frontline with Russian-backed separatists, the first fatalities in the conflict in more than a month.

"As a result of a shelling attack, two Ukrainian servicemen received fatal shrapnel wounds," the military command for the separatist conflict said.

‘Ukraine is Europe's shield against Russia’

Ukrainian President Zelensky said that his country was a "shield" against Russia and deserved more support in the face of a feared Russian invasion, as Moscow test-fired nuclear-capable missiles in a defiant show of force.

In a speech at the Munich Security Conference, Zelensky condemned "a policy of appeasement" towards Moscow.

"For eight years, Ukraine has been a shield. For eight years, Ukraine has been holding back one of the greatest armies in the world," said Zelensky, who travelled to Munich despite shelling in his country's conflict-torn east that left two Ukrainian soldiers dead.

He demanded "clear, feasible timeframes" for Ukraine to join the US-led NATO military alliance — a prospect that Moscow has said would be a red line for its security.

But he said he was willing to meet with Vladimir Putin, to find out "what the Russian president wants".

Western officials in Munich continued to raise the alarm about Moscow's intentions towards Ukraine, after US President Joe Biden said Friday that he was "convinced" Putin planned to invade, including with an attack on the capital Kyiv, within days.

They again warned of enormous sanctions if Russia attacks, with US Vice-President Kamala Harris saying this would only see NATO reinforce its "eastern flank" and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson urging the West to "stand strong together".

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