Kyiv reacted to Trump"s position on Ukrainian settlement

Ukraine insists on ceasefire before starting negotiations to avoid risks of blackmail during the peace process

This was reported by Serhiy Leshchenko, an advisor to the head of the President's Office.

"Our vision is first a ceasefire, and then everything else. Why? Because if we conduct negotiations before a ceasefire, this creates great risks of blackmail for Ukraine. Because if there is a ceasefire - it opens up space for diplomacy," Leshchenko said on the national telethon on Saturday.

He emphasized that a ceasefire and recording changes on the Deepstate map should be prerequisites for further negotiation process, rather than being conducted in parallel with ongoing hostilities.

"Because today's battles are one thing, tomorrow they're another. And this can have serious consequences simply due to very short-term changes on the battlefield, which occur in one direction or another," Leshchenko added.