KIEV, May 20. /TASS/. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky expressed confidence that it is necessary to hold direct talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Speaking on his plans "to find a solution" to the crisis in Donbass, Zelensky said it was vital to reach an agreement with Moscow.

"I give myself several more months to ramp up pressure so that we could find a diplomatic solution to the situation on the Minsk agreements," Zelensky said. "I would not like to resort to Plan B and Plan C. Although the public may think differently about direct talks between Zelensky and Putin, I’m sure that we should do this," Zelensky told a news conference on occasion of his first year in office.

In comment on the prospects of the Normandy Four (Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine) summit, Zelensky also highlighted the importance of contacts with the Russian leadership. "As for the president of Russia, we can't do anything here but talk with them as we must reach an agreement," he said.

Putin and Zelensky held their first phone conversation on July 11, 2019, a month and a half after the Ukrainian president’s inauguration. Their first face-to-face meeting took place on December 9 at the Normandy Four summit in Paris. They agreed on meeting in the Normandy format in April, but the summit was not convened.