Putin did not reject latest Ukraine peace plan, Kremlin claims, as top Zelenskyy aides to meet Trump envoys
It comes after Putin warned Russia is “ready for war” with Europe if peace talks fall through
Russia has denied claims it has rejected Donald Trump’s latest peace proposal for Ukraine.
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Russia’s Vladimir Putin welcomed Mr Trump’s delegation to Moscow on Tuesday for the latest round of peace talks aimed at ending the Ukraine war.
But the president’s team left without a deal, as the Kremlin declared “the two sides were neither further nor closer to resolving the crisis in Ukraine. There is a lot of work to be done.”
However, speaking on Wednesday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov dismissed the suggestion Mr Putin personally rejected the 20-point peace plan.
Mr Peskov said it is “wrong” to say Russia has rejected the peace deal and said the talks were only “an exchange of opinions” rather than concrete negotiations.
Yuri Ushakov said of the five-hour meeting: “We did not discuss … specific American proposals, but discussed the essence of what is embedded in these American documents”.
Discussing Mr Trump's latest plans to end the three-year conflict, Ushakov said: “We could agree with some things … and [Putin] also did not hide our critical and even negative attitude towards a number of proposals.”
It comes as Ukraine’s delegation prepares to meet with Mr Trump’s team later on Wednesday.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy took to Twitter to announce Rustem Umerov, the head of Ukraine's National Security and Defence Council, and the chief of Ukraine's general staff, Andrii Hnatov, will hold talks with Mr Trump’s team in the US today.
They will later speak with Ukraine’s European allies to brief them on the results of recent peace talks in Moscow and Washington.
“As always, Ukraine will work constructively in pursuit of a real peace,” Mr Zelenskyy said.
It comes after, in a stark warning to Ukraine’s allies, Mr Putin warned Russia is “ready for war” with Europe if peace talks fall through.
Prior to peace talks with Jared Kushner and US envoy Steve Witkoff in Moscow, the Russian president said: "We are not planning to go to war with Europe, but if Europe wants to and starts, we are ready right now."
Earlier on Tuesday, Ukraine agreed to the US’ 20-point peace plan to end the war with Russia, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced.
While Mr Zelenskyy has admitted that "some things still need to be worked out," he said the agreement marks "one of the most challenging and yet optimistic moments at the same time" for achieving peace in Ukraine more than three years into Vladimir Putin’s illegal war.
"Now more than ever there is a chance to end this war", Mr Zelenskyy said.
He refused to share the full details of the plan but specified what he described as the "most sensitive things and most difficult questions and challenges."
Meanwhile speaking ahead of a cabinet meeting in Washington, President Trump described the war in Ukraine as a "mess" and "not an easy situation to resolve".
He told reporters on Tuesday that he was trying to get Ukraine's war with Russia "settled," which he claimed would be the ninth during his tenure.
Ahead of a cabinet meeting in Washington, Trump said: "We're trying to get [the war] settled. I've settled eight wars. This would be the ninth, and our people are over in Russia right now to see if we can get it settled.
"Not an easy situation, let me tell you. What a mess."
It also comes as Mr Zelenskyy, who is on a state visit to Ireland, told an event in Dublin the speed of peace negotiations - and the US interest in the negotiations - had given him cause for optimism.
The Ukrainian president said: "A little bit [of] optimism was, in my words, [found] because of some speed of negotiations, and from the American side, their interest in it.
"It showed that America is not withdrawing now from any kind of diplomatic way of dialogue and it is good."
Reacting to Putin's comments earlier on Tuesday, Ukraine's foreign minister Andrii Sybiha said the Russian president's words demonstrate that he does not plan to end the war.
"Russia must end the bloodshed it has started. If this doesn’t happen and Putin just spits into the world's face once again, there must be consequences," Sybiha said.
"Russia must stop wasting the world's time, which must be the time for peace."He added that now is time "to force the source of war in Moscow to end it."