Baltic, Polish leaders en route to Ukraine to meet Zelenskyy

By Ali Murat Alhas

ANKARA (AA) – The leaders of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia are on their way to Ukraine to hold talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday.

"On our way to Kyiv, to a city that has suffered terribly due to the Russian war since my last visit," Estonian President Alar Karis said in a tweet that also included a picture of the leaders outside of a train.

"Together with Presidents Andrzej Duda, Gitanas Nauseda, Egils Levits, we visit Ukraine to show strong support to the Ukrainian people, will meet dear friend President Volodymyr Zelenskyy," he added.

Russia began its "special military operation" in Ukraine on Feb. 24 to "denazify and demilitarize" Ukraine. Western countries reacted with fury, imposing severe financial sanctions on Moscow.

A number of leaders including EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson have met Zelenskyy since Russia's announcement to decrease its military activities toward Ukrainian cities of Kyiv and Chernihiv.

The decision was announced after peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv in Istanbul late last month.

Ukrainian negotiators, meanwhile, said they could agree to a neutral status, one of Russia’s key demands, but sought international guarantees for its security.