Vladimir Putin has been accused of “wasting the world’s time” after rejecting the latest iteration of Donald Trump’s peace plan for Ukraine – and warning Europe that Russia is “ready” for war.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff and the president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner were involved in the five-hour discussion at the Kremlin, which came days after separate talks were held with a Ukrainian delegation in Florida.
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But following the meeting, Mr Putin’s foreign policy adviser warned a compromise is yet to be found – and “there’s still a lot of work to be done” before both presidents meet again.
Yuri Ushakov said: “We could agree on some things, and the president confirmed this to his interlocutors. Other things provoked criticism – and the president also didn’t hide our critical and even negative attitude toward a number of proposals.”
But Ukrainian and European officials accused Russia of not pursuing “any kind of peace”.
UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said Mr Putin “should end the bluster and the bloodshed and be ready to come to the table and to support a just and lasting peace”, while Ukrainian foreign minister Andrii Sybiha called on the Russian leader to “stop wasting the world’s time”.
Estonian foreign minister Margus Tsahkna said Mr Putin “has not changed course”, adding: “It’s pretty obvious that he doesn’t want to have any kind of peace.”
One particular sticking point relates to Russia’s demand that Ukraine cedes control of the entire Donbas region, which has caused alarm among European leaders.
He warned: “Territorial issues were specifically discussed, without which we see no resolution to the crisis.”
When asked whether a deal was closer or further away following the talks, Mr Ushakov added: “Not further, that’s for sure.”
Nonetheless, the senior Russian official described the negotiations as “rather useful, constructive and rather substantive” – and confirmed that the framework of America’s peace plan was discussed rather than specific wording.
“Some of the American proposals seem more or less acceptable, but they need to be discussed,” he said. “Some of the wording that was proposed doesn’t suit us. So the work will continue.”
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Putin warning: ‘We’re ready for war’
Putin: Europe on the side of war
Earlier on Tuesday, Mr Putin had said Russia was ready to fight if Europe wanted a war.
The Russian president accused European powers of changing peace proposals for Ukraine with “demands” that Russia considered “absolutely unacceptable”.
Mr Putin also claimed the Europeans were “on the side of war”.
“We’re not planning to go to war with Europe, I’ve said that a hundred times,” he said following an investment forum.
“But if Europe suddenly wants to fight us and starts, we’re ready right now. There can be no doubt about that.”
He added: “If Europe suddenly wants to start a war with us and does, then a situation could very quickly arise in which we have no one to negotiate with.”
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Is the UK prepared to fight a war?
The warning comes as Sky News releases new episodes of The Wargame podcast, where interviews with almost every British defence secretary since the end of the Cold War suggest the UK is “really unprepared” to fight a war.
European governments have spent billions of pounds to support Ukraine financially and militarily – as well as investing in efforts to wean themselves from Russian energy, and strengthening their own armed forces.
There is concern that, if Moscow gets what it wants in Ukraine, it could embolden Russia to threaten or disrupt other European countries, which have already faced repeated incursions from drones and fighter jets in recent months.
President Zelenskyy had a guard of honour in Dublin. Pic: Reuters
Zelenskyy in Dublin
Volodymyr Zelenskyy was in Dublin on Tuesday to meet Ireland’s prime minister and president.
During the trip, Ukraine’s president had warned that a lot was riding on the outcome of the talks in Moscow – and he was expecting swift reports from the US envoys on whether negotiations could move forward.
“The future and the next steps depend on these signals,” Mr Zelenskyy said at a news conference. “If the signals show fair play with our partners, we then might meet very soon.”
Mr Zelenskyy added: “Our people are dying every day. I am ready … to meet with President Trump. It all depends on the talks.”
He said there would be “no easy decisions” – and stressed there must be “no games behind Ukraine’s back”.
