Keith Kellogg, the US President's Special Representative for Russia and Ukraine, said that a ceasefire in Ukraine should be achieved first. At the same time, he emphasized that the war must be stopped in the long term, not just diplomatically. He made this statement during the 8th Ukrainian Lunch on the occasion of the Munich Security Conference, UNN reports .
Kellogg said that the US will continue to fund Ukraine. He also emphasized that the killings must stop.
"Whatever you call it, it's a ceasefire. What needs to be done. First, we need to define the term and when, we define what stable security conditions are, we need to define this concept. But once you define it, you have to achieve a ceasefire first, no matter what happens next. We said that Ukraine is part of this conflict, and therefore the two parties to the conflict must decide on a ceasefire. Ukrainians are part of this decision. They are dying on the battlefield," Kellogg said.
Kellogg emphasized that the United States views the war in Ukraine strategically, not tactically.
"We need to understand that this war, when you think about it, is an expansion of the war, when you think about continuing the war, you have to think about expanding the war. And alliances are being built, alliances with China, North Korea, Iran, which we did not see four years ago. So the situation is changing, and we understand this. We look at it strategically, not tactically, but strategically, as it looks not only for Europe, it is a global issue. You cannot limit this conflict intellectually to Europe alone," Kellogg said.
He said that this is a global war.
"This is a terrible war, it needs to be stopped in the long term, not just now diplomatically, cautiously. We need to stop the war on the ground," Kellogg said.
Addendum
Kellogg stated that we need to make sure that Ukraine's security is about achieving the right goals and it will not be "Minsk-2".
He emphasized that it is necessary to understand that a ceasefire and a long-term peace agreement will not be a great success.
Kellogg also said that the United States would mediate in the negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.