KYIV, Dec 9 - President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday that he’s open to the potential deployment of Western troops in Ukraine to guarantee the country’s security as part of a broad effort to end the almost three-year war with Russia.

The deployment would be a step toward Ukraine joining NATO, Zelenskyy said in a post on his Telegram channel.

“But before that, we must have a clear understanding of when Ukraine will be in the European Union and when Ukraine will be in NATO,” Zelenskyy said, The Associated Press reported.

His proposals tread a delicate diplomatic path amid international efforts to find a way of ending Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II at a time when Russia has gained an upper hand in the fighting.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is seeking to bring about a ceasefire and met with Zelenskyy in Paris on Saturday. But Zelenskyy said Monday that he would approach outgoing U.S. President Joe Biden about Ukraine’s possible NATO membership because he’s still in office, while Trump doesn’t yet have “legal rights” to decide on the matter.

Meanwhile, Ukraine hopes to strengthen its long-range capabilities with Germany's help, Zelenskyy said ahead of his talks with German Chancellor candidate Friedrich Merz, Interfax-Ukraine reported.

"We really want to hear your position on geopolitics, on NATO. We very much hope for strengthening Ukraine's long-range capabilities," the head of state said on Monday.

He thanked Germany for the assistance provided by the government, the parliament, and people who have been hosting Ukrainians from day one of the full-scale war.

Zelenskyy also recalled that the Ministry of National Unity has been set up in Ukraine to address Ukrainians' affairs jointly with the Foreign Ministry.

"This ministry will pay particular attention to our people who are staying in Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic, and other countries. But most of them are in Germany today," he said.

The President added that Ukraine very much counts on "the meetings in Germany and creation of relevant departments for assistance to Ukrainians."

Later, the presidential press service said that Zelenskyy and Merz discussed an increase in financial military assistance to Ukraine next year, which is critically important to protect lives in Ukraine, as the country suffers every day from Russian attacks and every manifestation of support saves people. Increased assistance will also strengthen Ukraine's positions for achieving a just and sustainable peace.

One of the key subjects of the discussion was the Victory Plan. The parties agreed that Ukraine could be strengthened with long-range capabilities and an invitation to NATO, while establishment of just peace will impact global security, the press service said.

Zelenskyy and Merz also discussed Ukraine's integration into the EU, ensuring unity in Europe and its role in strengthening Ukraine. The President supported the idea of the CDU/CSU leader to set up a contact group with the participation of Germany, France, the UK and Poland in order to restore a just and lasting peace for Ukraine. Zelensky suggested including Denmark in this group.

Special attention was paid to the issue of Ukrainians who left for Germany because of the full-scale Russian invasion. The head of state said that a visit of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Unity of Ukraine Oleksiy Chernyshev to Berlin had already been scheduled. (ap/ez)