Russian President Vladimir Putin can meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky only when it is necessary to definitively conclude agreements to end the conflict. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian state television on Wednesday, TASR reports, according to Reuters.
- Putin is willing to meet with Zelensky only when final agreements are reached.
- The Kremlin conditions the personal meeting of the leaders with a specific goal and a productive result.
- Kyiv asked Turkey and other states to mediate the leaders’ summit.
- Ukraine refuses to hold a meeting of presidents on the territory of Russia or Belarus.
- The negotiations are mainly related to the disputed control of four Ukrainian regions by Russia.
“It depends on what the goal of this meeting is. Why should they meet? Putin said he is ready to meet in Moscow at any time.” quoted Peskov’s TASS news agency. “What matters is that there is a reason to meet and that the meeting is productive. And it can only be held to finalize agreements,” added the spokesperson.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha reported on Wednesday that Kyiv asked Turkey for help in organizing Zelensky’s meeting with Putin. According to the minister, Ukraine has also approached other countries and is ready to consider all offers for meeting venues except Russia and Belarus. The intention of a meeting at such a level would be to “give a new impetus to the peace process”, Sybiha said.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte at a meeting in Ankara on Wednesday that the country is seeking the resumption of negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv and a meeting of the leaders of the warring parties.
So far, the negotiations between the delegations of Ukraine and Russia, some of which took place in Turkey, have not brought a fundamental breakthrough. Disagreements prevail mainly over questions of future control over four Ukrainian regions, which Russia is trying to fully control.
