"False information"

Zelensky denies plans for a ceasefire

Selenskyj is currently on a major European tour.(Bild: AFP/Ludovic MARIN)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi has denied discussing plans for a possible ceasefire with Russia during his current tour of Western European capitals. This is "false information" controlled by Russia.

"I have seen in some media that I came here to talk about a ceasefire. That is false," he said after a meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron in Paris on Thursday. 

Selensky reiterated his appeal to Western allies to continue supporting Ukraine. "We need your help before winter," he said.

The Ukrainian president had previously met the British head of government Keir Starmer and the new NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte in London. It was "very important that we can show our continued commitment to support Ukraine", said Starmer. Rutte stressed that it was not just about Ukraine, but also about "the defense of the West and how we stay secure".

Selenskyj later wanted to travel on from Paris to Rome, where meetings with the Italian head of government Giorgia Meloni on Thursday evening and with Pope Francis on Friday morning were on his agenda. On Friday, he is expected to meet Germany's Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) in Berlin.