Putin Signals Zelenskyy Meeting — But Only on Kremlin Terms

Russian President Vladimir Putin said he is ready to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy not only in Moscow but also in a third country. At the same time, the Kremlin leader said that such a meeting is possible only to sign an agreement.

This is reported by Russian media.

Putin made the relevant statements during a press conference after a military parade in Moscow. According to him, the United States “sincerely seeks a settlement,” but he called the issue of negotiations a matter for Ukraine and Russia.

“I am ready to meet with Zelensky, but only to sign an agreement,” said Vladimir Putin.

The Kremlin leader also accused Ukraine of not making any proposals for a prisoner exchange. He stated that Russia had allegedly previously provided Kyiv with proposals and a list of Ukrainian military personnel held in captivity.

“Even before Trump’s proposal, Russia sent Ukraine a proposal for an exchange of prisoners of war… No proposals from Kyiv for an exchange of prisoners have been received so far,” Putin said.

In addition, the Russian president said that Moscow had handed over to Ukraine a list of 500 Ukrainian prisoners of war. During the press conference, Putin also made a number of statements regarding the war against Ukraine. In particular, he said that the Russian-Ukrainian war was supposedly “coming to an end.”

“I think that the matter in the Ukrainian conflict is coming to an end,” the Kremlin head said.

Putin also once again voiced his own version of the reasons for the start of the war against Ukraine.

“The events in Ukraine began after Kyiv’s attempts to associate with the EU,” the Russian president said.

Separately, he stated that the strikes on the center of Kyiv were allegedly “a response to provocations.”

As “Pryamiy” reported, the day before, Ukraine announced its readiness to hold a meeting at the highest level with Russia with the participation of international partners. This is a format of negotiations involving the leaders of Ukraine, Russia, Turkey, and, probably, the United States.

Subsequently, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced his intention to hold trilateral talks with the United States and Russia on the territory of Azerbaijan.

Meanwhile, the Kremlin said that Vladimir Putin is ready for a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy, but it must be meaningful and productive. It clarified that the Russian dictator does not rule out negotiations and is ready to meet in Moscow at any time.

As a reminder, at the end of last year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared his readiness to meet with Vladimir Putin in any format. He called the key condition the correspondence of Russia’s statements to its real actions.

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