The Russian president has said it is possible that he will meet with Vladimir Zelensky once final agreements have been reached
Victory Day celebrations across Russia and the world concluded on May 9, while President Vladimir Putin wrapped up a series of meetings with foreign leaders who came to Moscow and spoke to journalists about the Ukraine conflict, Russia-China ties, and other international issues.
“I think the matter is heading towards the completion of the Ukrainian conflict,”the Russian leader observed while answering questions from the press. He also did not rule out a possible meeting with Vladimir Zelensky in a third country once final agreements on a settlement are reached.
Here are some further highlights from Putin’s remarks:
Ukraine yet to respond to Trump’s POW exchange initiative
On May 5, Moscow sent Kiev a list of 500 Ukrainian prisoners of war and proposed an exchange, Putin said.
“We supported it right away,”Putin said, referring to US President Donald Trump’s proposal. According to the Russian president, Ukraine said it needed time to review the list and later stated it was“not prepared”for the exchange. As of now, there has been no action from the Ukrainian side.
Russia has also accused Kiev of rejecting another major prisoner swap earlier on May 9.
Putin and Trump discussed Victory Day ceasefire
During his last phone call with Donald Trump in late April, the two leaders spoke about the May 9 celebrations, Putin revealed. Trump reportedly recalled the common struggle against Nazism.
Putin informed Trump of Russia’s plan to declare a ceasefire for May 8 and 9.“President Trump supported it,”Putin said. Russia publicly announced the truce, but received no immediate reaction from Ukraine. Kiev, however, later proposed a ceasefire on May 6 instead, the Russian leader stressed.
Putin confident in future restoration of ties with West
Russian President Vladimir Putin explained that Western politicians are responsible for the Ukraine conflict, as they deceived everyone with their promise not to expand NATO eastward.
“Seeking to use Ukraine as an instrument of their geopolitical goals, these Western figures deceived everyone, and they’re now publicly admitting it,”the president emphasized.“And they began deceiving us about the West’s eastward expansion back in the early 1990s... All of this, taken together, provoked today’s situation.”
Putin also revealed that Russia warned its foreign partners about the possible consequences of a retaliatory strike on Kiev following provocations on Victory Day. According to him, Moscow specifically asked Washington to ensure the safety of diplomatic missions in the Ukrainian capital, which contributed to Trump’s initiative for a three-day ceasefire.
The Russian leader emphasized that Moscow has no desire to escalate or worsen relations with anyone.
He stressed, however, that Russia had never closed the door to negotiations with Europe or Ukraine and mentioned former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder as a preferred intermediary for dialogue. Putin expressed confidence that Russia would restore relations with many Western countries in the future.
