Russia says Ukraine ‘not interested’ in long-term peace

Comments by Russia’s FM travel arsenic Ukraine’s Zelenskyy says information guarantees needed earlier Putin meeting.

Russia has said that Ukraine was “not interested” successful a semipermanent bid deal, accusing it of seeking information guarantees incompatible with Russia’s demands.

“The Ukrainian authorities and its representatives remark connected the existent concern successful a precise circumstantial way, straight showing that they are not funny successful a sustainable, fair, semipermanent settlement,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said astatine a quality league connected Thursday.

Lavrov besides repeated Russia’s argumentation that Russian President Vladimir Putin is acceptable to conscionable with Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy – but lone aft cardinal issues person antecedently been worked retired by elder officials successful what could beryllium a agelong negotiating process.

His comments came arsenic Zelenskyy announced helium could conscionable with Putin, but lone aft his allies hold to information guarantees for Ukraine to deter aboriginal Russian attacks erstwhile the warring stops.

In comments released connected Thursday, Zelenskyy besides warned that some sides were preparing for further fighting. Russia was gathering up troops connected the confederate beforehand enactment and Ukraine was test-launching a caller long-range cruise missile, helium said.

US President Donald Trump is trying to extremity Russia’s three-and-a-half-year penetration of Ukraine done talks with Zelenskyy and Putin.

While helium has upended a years-long Western argumentation of isolating the Russian leader, helium has made small tangible advancement towards a bid deal.

Trump said successful comments posted connected his ain societal media platform, Truth Social, that the warfare would person “never happened” if helium was successful bureau astatine the clip of Russia’s invasion.

“Zero chance,” Trump wrote, adding: “Interesting times ahead,” without elaborating further.

Since Trump returned to the White House successful January and began pushing for an extremity to the fighting, Russian forces person continued to dilatory but steadily gain ground crossed the beforehand line.

Zelenskyy, successful his comments to reporters, said Ukraine wants to person “an knowing of the information guarantees architecture wrong 7 to 10 days”.

“We request to recognize which state volition beryllium acceptable to bash what astatine each circumstantial moment,” helium added.

Ukraine allies led by the United Kingdom and France are putting unneurotic a subject conjugation to enactment the guarantees. Lavrov warned that immoderate deployment of European troops to the state would beryllium “absolutely unacceptable”.

Once an outline of the information guarantees is agreed, Trump would similar to spot a bilateral gathering betwixt Putin and Zelenskyy, the Ukrainian person said.

But immoderate gathering with the Russian person should beryllium held successful a “neutral” European country, helium added, ruling retired immoderate acme successful Moscow.

He besides rejected the thought of China playing a relation successful guaranteeing Ukraine’s security, citing Beijing’s alleged enactment for Moscow.

Zelenskyy has said the lone mode to extremity the warfare is simply a gathering with Putin, and has said Trump should beryllium present, too.

But Moscow has played down the imaginable of a acme betwixt Putin and Zelenskyy immoderate clip soon, insisting it needs to beryllium included successful discussions connected aboriginal information guarantees for Ukraine.

Source:

Al Jazeera and quality agencies