MOSCOW

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called "historic" the 10-year defense cooperation agreements with Saudi Arabia and Qatar reached during his current Middle East tour.

Speaking at a virtual news briefing, Zelenskyy said Ukraine had never had such agreements in the region before.

"I believe these are historic agreements. We have agreed on strategic cooperation in the MilTech direction and other areas. We are talking about ten-year agreements," he said, noting that they concern mutual assistance and that Ukraine is particularly interested in protection against ballistic threats.

"We also have challenges related to energy, diesel, and so on. Therefore, in my opinion, all our agreements, which will be legally formalized, are very important for our state. Ukraine has never had such agreements in this region before," he added.

Zelenskyy said National Security and Defense Council Secretary Rustem Umerov is currently in the Middle East and will hold a series of meetings.

The Ukrainian president began his Middle East tour on March 27, visiting Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, and Jordan. In Doha, he concluded a defense partnership agreement with Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani for at least 10 years, with a similar agreement reached with Saudi Arabia. He also announced that a comparable document would be signed with the UAE.

Commenting on the state of Russia-Ukraine peace talks, Zelenskyy said the trilateral meeting is being postponed because the US is currently focused on Iran.

"I don't believe we are at a dead end. If this is a dead end — what next, relax and surrender?" he said.

The situation is further complicated by uncertainty over the venue for negotiations. The US proposed holding the meeting on its territory, but Russia refused, he said.

"We support a meeting anywhere — the US, Türkiye, Switzerland. Anywhere where the partners are ready to meet," Zelenskyy said, pledging to continue pursuing a diplomatic path while defending Ukraine's positions on the front.

The Ukrainian president also confirmed that "some partners" asked Kyiv to stop striking Russia's oil sector after the beginning of the conflict in Iran.

"Following this global energy crisis, we indeed received signals from some of our partners on how to reduce our responses targeting the oil sector and the energy sector of the Russian Federation," he said.

Zelenskyy did not specify which "partners" he was referring to but expressed readiness for an Easter ceasefire.

"I emphasize once again — if Russia is ready not to strike Ukraine's energy infrastructure, we will not respond against their energy infrastructure," he said.

"In my opinion, honestly, normal people who respect life talk about a ceasefire and ending the war for life, not just for a few days. But certainly, we are ready for any compromises," the president added.

In recent weeks, Ukraine has repeatedly struck several Russian terminals used for oil exports, including those in the Leningrad region.