FLASH
Shkruar nga PamfletiThe Russian president says the latest draft of the peace plan "can be the basis for future agreements" only if Kiev gives up territories.
Vladimir Putin has said that the outline of a draft peace plan discussed by the US and Ukraine could serve as the basis for future negotiations to end the war but insisted that Ukraine would have to hand over territory for any deal to be possible.
"In general, we agree that this could be the basis for future agreements," Putin said, noting that the version of the plan discussed by Washington and Kiev in Geneva had been shared with Moscow.
"We see that the American side is taking our position into account in some areas," he added. "But on other points, we need to sit down and talk.", he added
The Russian president's uncompromising remarks in which he again described Volodymyr Zelensky as illegitimate suggested that, despite the White House's optimism, there is little sign of movement on the key points needed to end the war.
Speaking to reporters during a working visit to Kyrgyzstan, Putin said Russia would stop its offensive only if Ukrainian forces withdrew from unspecified areas currently under Kiev's control. "If Ukrainian troops withdraw from the territories they occupy, then we will stop fighting," he said. "If they don't, we will achieve our goals militarily."
He also reiterated his claim that Ukraine's leadership was illegitimate, arguing that this made it legally impossible to sign a binding agreement with Kiev and that any future solution would require broader international recognition.
Putin confirmed that US special envoy Steve Witkoff would travel to Russia early next week and dismissed accusations that Witkoff had shown bias towards Moscow during peace talks, calling them "nonsense."
Witkoff, a longtime Trump business associate and property developer, has faced criticism in Europe and the US after a leaked phone call revealed he was advising a senior Kremlin aide on how Putin should handle negotiations with Trump.
Russia's latest negotiating tactics echo those it has employed since Trump's reelection: The Kremlin signals a willingness to explore possible peace deals while showing no inclination to back down from its maximalist demands - most of which are seen in Kiev as unacceptable and tantamount to capitulation.
Tatiana Stanovaya, an independent Russian political analyst, wrote in X: “I see nothing at the moment that would force Putin to recalculate his goals or abandon his core demands.
"Putin feels more confident than ever about the situation on the battlefield and is convinced that he can wait until Kiev finally admits that it cannot win and must negotiate on Russia's known terms," she added.
Some of these conditions appeared in the original 28-point plan developed by US and Russian officials and published last week.
They would require Ukraine to voluntarily cede territory that Moscow has failed to militarily occupy. Kiev would also be expected to accept reductions or a halt to US military aid, while any future deployment of Western troops to Ukraine, including those envisaged under the Franco-British "coalition of the willing", would be explicitly banned.
Zelenskyy's chief of staff, Andriy Yermak, said the Ukrainian president would not agree to give up land to Russia in exchange for peace.
"As long as Zelenskyy is president, no one should count on us to give up territory. He will not sign the surrender of territory," he told the American magazine Atlantic.
Lini një Përgjigje