A decision on holding negotiations with the Russian Federation should be made by Ukraine independently, and not by the United States or any other country, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said.

He said this at a joint press conference with Foreign Minister of Ukraine Dmytro Kuleba in Kyiv on Wednesday, adding that if Putin showed any interest in seriously participating in the negotiations, Ukrainians would respond to this, but Putin demonstrates the exact opposite every day.

Blinken again emphasized that the United States supports Ukraine in its decisions and assured that there will be nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine.