Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky says 'very little' achieved at Paris summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, have met at a summit in Paris brokered by France and Germany.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (L), French President Emmanuel Macron (C) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (R)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky (L), French President Emmanuel Macron (C) and Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) Source: AAP

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Monday said he regretted that very little had been achieved at a summit in Paris on ending the conflict in the east of Ukraine, which saw him hold landmark talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

"Many questions were tackled and my counterparts have said it is a very good result for a first meeting. But I will be honest - it is very little, I wanted to resolve a larger number of problems," he said after the talks in Paris.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he was satisfied with Ukraine peace talks, saying in English, "Yes, I'm happy," according to a video posted on Twitter.

Mr Putin and Mr Zelensky met for their first one-on-one talks since the Ukrainian leader's election in April.
The leaders met at the presidential palace in Paris before sitting down with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The meeting comes five years after conflict broke out between the Ukrainian government and pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine.

Mr Zelensky, inaugurated this year, is seeking to end a conflict with Russian-supported rebels in eastern Ukraine.

Mr Zelensky has reached out to Mr Putin since his election in April, and says resolving the conflict in the Donetsk Basin, or Donbass, region is his priority.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin address the media
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and Russian President Vladimir Putin address the media. Source: AAP
Recent months have seen several confidence-building steps including troop pullbacks and exchanges of prisoners.

He and Mr Putin shook hands when they met and worked on a potential agreement towards resolving the conflict, the Kremlin was quoted as saying.

The talks were also attended by energy officials, including Russia's energy minister and the head of Russian state natural gas export monopoly Gazprom, as Ukraine looks to secure gas supplies via its territory.

Mr Macron, who pushed for the talks, is meanwhile hoping for an improvement in relations between Russia and the European Union.


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Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky says 'very little' achieved at Paris summit | SBS News