Moscow has described the latest US peace proposals as unacceptable to the Kremlin, highlighting the limited progress Donald Trump has made on his promise to end the war in Ukraine since taking office in January.
Sergei Ryabkov, a foreign policy adviser to Vladimir Putin, said some of Russia’s key demands were not being addressed by the US proposals to end the war, in comments that marked a rare acknowledgment from the Russian side that talks with the US over Ukraine had stalled in recent weeks.
“We take the models and solutions proposed by the Americans very seriously, but we can’t accept it all in its current form,” Ryabkov was quoted by state media as telling the Russian magazine International Affairs. It came after Trump on Sunday revealed his frustration with Putin, saying he was “pissed off” and threatening to impose tariffs on Russian oil exports.
“All we have today is an attempt to find some kind of framework that would first allow for a ceasefire – at least as envisioned by the Americans,” Ryabkov said.
“As far as we can see, there is no place in them today for our main demand, namely to solve the problems related to the root causes of this conflict.”
Putin has repeatedly referred to what he claimed were the “root causes” of the conflict to justify his hardline position on any prospective deal to end the war in Ukraine.
As preconditions for a ceasefire, the Russian leader has insisted on terms that would, in effect, dismantle Ukraine as an independent, functioning state – pulling it firmly into Russia’s sphere of influence.
He has demanded that Kyiv recognise Russia’s annexation of Crimea and four partly occupied regions in the south-east, withdraw its forces from those areas, pledge never to join Nato, and agree to demilitarisation.
In recent weeks the Russian president has also been openly pushing for regime change in Ukraine, claiming that Volodymyr Zelenskyy lacks the legitimacy to sign a peace deal and suggesting that Ukraine needs external governance.
Trump appears to be growing increasingly impatient with his lack of progress in a war that he promised to end in 24 hours, expressing frustration with Russian and Ukrainian leaders as he struggles to forge a truce.
Trump’s comment that he was “pissed off” with Putin over the Russian leader’s approach to a potential ceasefire in Ukraine was a noticeable shift in tone from a leader who had previously expressed admiration for Putin. However, Trump later dialled back his rhetoric and by Monday was accusing Ukraine of trying to renegotiate an economic deal with the US.
The White House on Tuesday said Trump was frustrated with leaders on both sides of the war.
Despite a flurry of US-brokered meetings and parallel talks with Russia and Ukraine in Saudi Arabia that produced – on paper – a 30-day energy ceasefire, both sides have continued to strike each other’s energy infrastructure.
The Trump administration also attempted to broker a ceasefire in the Black Sea, but Moscow sought to attach several conditions to the deal, including the easing of European sanctions, a demand swiftly rejected by Brussels.
Grigory Karasin, who represented Russia at the talks with the US in Saudi Arabia, last week admitted that the sides had failed to make significant progress and that negotiations may drag into next year.
But Trump’s team has said it remains committed to halting the war, with the US leader telling NBC he and Putin planned to speak again this week.
The Finnish president, Alexander Stubb, who spent time with Trump over the weekend, said he proposed setting a deadline of 20 April for Putin to comply with a full ceasefire.
However, those close to the Kremlin believe Moscow is unlikely to accept a full ceasefire without securing some of its demands, which include the cessation of all arms and intelligence supplies to Ukraine from the US and other allies.
“We’re prepared to keep fighting for some time,” said Fyodor Lukyanov, a prominent Russian foreign policy analyst who heads a council that advises the Kremlin. “The continuation of the war, which we are slowly but surely winning, is in our interest. Especially considering that the main sponsor [the US] seems to be backing out … Why should we rush in a situation like this?”
