Kyiv, Ukraine - President Volodymyr Zelensky has said he hopes for positive signals on Ukraine joining NATO after next month's US elections and that the vote could pave the way for peace talks with Russia.

The US is Kyiv's most important military, financial, and political backer, but there are fears a victory for Donald Trump could threaten Washington's multi-billion dollar support.

The Ukrainian leader has been on a diplomatic offensive ahead of the vote to press Western leaders for more support to help Ukraine win the war with Russia now grinding through a third year.

Zelensky this month unveiled his Victory Plan where chief among the proposals was a call for Ukraine to be given an "immediate" invitation to join the US-led NATO military alliance.

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"After the election, we hope for a more positive reaction from the United States. Not because of the change of the president, but simply because the focus, the attention of the United States is now on the elections," he told journalists in Kyiv on Monday.

"I think they don't want to take unnecessary risks," the 46-year-old leader said in comments held under embargo until Tuesday.

Asked whether he thought Moscow was ready for negotiations, Zelensky told journalists, "First of all, it depends on the elections in the United States. I think they will be watching the policy of the United States."

Zelensky said that based on conversations with Trump and Kamala Harris, he expects the US to "demonstrate the policy very quickly, after the elections."

"They will not wait until January," he added.

Zelensky again told journalists that Ukraine was not seeking nuclear weapons, just a few days after suggesting Kyiv needs either NATO membership or nuclear arms.

Ukraine surrendered the world's third-largest nuclear arsenal after the Soviet Union broke up in 1991. It dismantled the arsenal in return for security guarantees from Russia and the US.

"We gave away nuclear weapons. We did not get NATO. All we got was a full-scale war and many victims, so today we have only one way out," he told reporters.

"We need NATO, because we don't have the weapons that can stop Putin," he added.