SAO PAULO (Reuters) -Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskiy met on Wednesday on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, according to a statement from the Brazilian government.
During the meeting, Lula expressed his belief that a military response will not bring an end to the conflict with Russia, and that an agreement on the terms of a ceasefire should be the first step in negotiations, the statement said.
The Brazilian leader advocated for greater involvement by the United Nations in reaching a negotiated solution that takes into account the security concerns of Ukraine and Russia, according to the statement.
Zelenskiy, writing on the Telegram messaging app, described his meeting with Lula as “meaningful” and said “strong international pressure was needed on Russia to remove blockages on the path to dialogue”.
“I told the president about the real situation at the front and Russia’s manipulative attempts to depict military victories,” he wrote. Zelenskiy said he appreciated Lula’s “readiness to play a role in the peace process”.
Speaking to journalists after the meeting, Zelenskiy said: “It’s good that there are signals from Brazil that they support, most of all, a ceasefire and peace for the Ukrainian people.”
According to the Ukrainian president, the meeting with Lula lasted around one hour, and was their first lengthy conversation in several years.
“President Lula told me that he will try his best to do everything to bring peace closer to Ukraine. I’m thankful to him for his clear position.”
The two left several topics on the table for future conversations, including on trade and economy, Zelenskiy said.
(Reporting by Isabel Teles; Editing by Kylie Madry, Ron Popeski and Alistair Bell)
