President's Office hopes partners will help Ukraine hold talks with Putin

Deputy Head of the President's Office Andriy Sybiha said this on the Right to Power talk show on Thursday, December 9, commenting on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's call with U.S. President Joe Biden, Ukrinform reports.

"Today it was also stated [during the call] that the President of Ukraine is ready for direct talks with President Putin. The Ukrainian side is ready for these talks, has a relevant position and we hope that this conversation will take place, including with the support of our partners," he said.

Sybiha stressed that Ukraine is not "the party that can be blamed for escalating the situation."

"We are in favor of a peaceful settlement of the conflict, diplomatic tools. We must now allow diplomats to do their work together with experts," he concluded.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky held a phone call on December 9, which lasted for one-and-a-half hours.

On December 1, Zelensky in his annual state-of-the-nation address to the Verkhovna Rada said that it would not be possible to stop the military conflict in eastern Ukraine without direct talks with Russia.

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