The Kremlin said on Sunday that Russia was open to talks on Ukraine after US president-elect Donald Trump called for “an immediate ceasefire and negotiations”.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said peace negotiations had to be based on agreements reached in Istanbul in 2022 and on the current battlefield realities.
Mr Peskov noted that Ukraine has banned contacts with the Russian leadership through a special decree which he said would have to be revoked if talks were to proceed.
“Our position on Ukraine is well known; the conditions for an immediate stop of hostilities were set out by president Putin in his speech to the Russian foreign ministry in June of this year. It is important to recall that it was Ukraine that refused and continues to refuse negotiations,” Mr Peskov said.
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Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday the war with Russia cannot be ended with a piece of paper and a few signatures and that ceasefire without guarantees can be broken at any time. – Reuters
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