The American Minister of Defense, Lloyd Austin stated that during the meeting of the Contact Group for the Defense of Ukraine, the peace plan that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky intends to present to his American counterpart Joe Biden was not discussed.

He stressed that the war could end very quickly if Russian President Vladimir Putin decides to withdraw his troops from the occupied territories in Ukraine.

"This is something that Putin can end very quickly if he makes the simple and correct decision to undo what he has done. As for absolute victory, it really depends on how you define it. Ukraine is focused on defending its sovereign territory," Austin told a news conference after a meeting of the Ukrainian Defense Contact Group at Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

The head of the Pentagon expressed confidence that Zelensky will present the victory plan to Biden and other leaders "at the first opportunity".

"I had the opportunity to spend some time with President Zelensky, and you will remember that Zelensky presented his plans and goals during his opening speech. But as for the plan to win, we didn't talk about that," Austin said, reports Interfax Ukraine.

He reiterated that partners, including the United States of America, will continue to do everything possible to help them in this.

"You know what Russia's goals and objectives are - we know from the beginning that they want to annex Ukraine because they don't believe that Ukraine is a benevolent country," he added.

The US Secretary of Defense said he thinks the conflict will eventually be resolved at the negotiating table, but that it is difficult to predict when that moment will come.

"Therefore, we will continue to work to put Ukraine in the best possible position when and if that day comes in the future," Austin concluded.