Ukraine's leader accuses Russia's Putin of 'blocking peace'

By Ceyhun Alizade

ANKARA (AA) - Ukraine's leader in an extraordinary G7 virtual meeting on Tuesday accused his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on "blocking peace," noting that "there can be no dialogue with this leader of Russia, who has no future."

"Talks can be either with another head of Russia – who will comply with the UN Charter, the basic principles of humanity and territorial integrity of Ukraine – or in a different configuration, so that the key terrorist does not have the opportunity to influence key decisions through terror. Now one person is blocking peace – and this person is in Moscow," said President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

As a "symmetric" response to Russia's recent strikes across Ukraine, including the capital Kyiv, Zelenskyy called to block Russia's energy sector with sanctions, "break the stability" of Russian revenues from oil and gas trade.

"A tough price cap is needed for the exports of oil and gas from Russia – zero profit for the terrorist state," he added.

Zelenskyy asserted that such steps can "bring peace closer" as it will encourage Moscow "to think about peace, about the unprofitability of war."

He claimed that Russia uses all means, including missile strikes, threats of a radiation disaster, infrastructural "sabotage" in Europe, and attempts to destroy Ukraine's energy facilities to "provoke chaos in Ukraine and entire democratic world."

Zelenskyy also offered the stationing of a mission of international observers on the Ukraine-Belarus border to monitor the security situation in the region amid attempts by Moscow to "directly draw" Belarus in the conflict.

"Ukraine did not plan and does not plan military measures against Belarus. We are only interested in restoring our territorial integrity," he stressed.