(Moscow) The Kremlin on Thursday accused Ukraine of withdrawing from peace talks in March with Russia “on orders” from the United States, when “a very, very difficult balance had been reached” between Kyiv and Moscow.
Posted at 7:23 a.m.
“The text was actually ready. […] And then, suddenly, the Ukrainian side disappeared from the radar, (it) said that it no longer wanted to continue the negotiations,” lamented Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov, saying that Vladimir Putin had considered “obvious” that “such a rejection of the agreements already agreed clearly occurred on the orders of Washington”.
“It is quite obvious,” he hammered to the press.
On Wednesday, the Bissau-Guinean Umaro Sissoco Embalo, current president of ECOWAS, had affirmed in Kyiv that Vladimir Putin, whom he had visited the day before, “had expressed the idea that he was ready to negotiate with the president Zelensky”.
Asked about these remarks, Mr. Peskov assured that Russia was “ready to guarantee its interests at the negotiating table”.
“We want it, but in this specific case, we are talking about a total reluctance on the part of Ukraine”, he regretted, specifying that “there was no specific message” in addition for the Ukrainian Presidency.
Volodymyr Zelensky had quickly swept away any possibility of discussions with Moscow, denouncing “the prepared rhetoric” of Vladimir Putin.
He was even more categorical at the end of September, assuring that Ukraine would not negotiate with Russia as long as Vladimir Putin is president.
Talks between Kyiv and Moscow have stalled since March, with both sides blaming each other for the standoff.