Putin says Russia ready to resume Ukraine talks

No one is excluding Kiev from the negotiation process, according to the Russian president. Both Moscow and Washington expect Ukraine to take part, Putin said, adding that it is largely up to Ukraine and the EU to decide whether they want to be part of the talks or not.

“I’ve said this 100 times: If they are willing, they are free to engage in such talks,” Putin told journalists, referring to potential peace negotiations with Kiev and the EU’s participation.

“We are ready to go back to the negotiating table.”

“Russia has never walked away from the negotiation process with Ukraine, never,” the president told reporters in St. Petersburg.

He stressed that it was Kiev that banned officials from engaging in any talks with Moscow. It “withdrew from the Istanbul negotiations and publicly announced it,” he said.

The president hailed the results of the Russia-US talks in Saudi Arabia’s capital on Tuesday.

Resolving the Ukraine conflict would be impossible without the normalization of relations between Moscow and Washington, Putin stated. The meeting was primarily aimed at “increasing trust” between the two nations, he added.

The meeting was “the first step” in restoring joint work with the US in a variety of areas ranging from strategic stability and arms control to the resolution of the Ukraine conflict and the crisis in the Middle East.

Putin also welcomed what he described as positive changes in Washington’s attitude towards working with Moscow.

The atmosphere of the talks was “very friendly,” Putin said, adding that the US is represented by “absolutely different people, who are open for talks without any prejudices… and committed to joint work.”

Putin said he would be glad to meet with US President Donald Trump, though it’s too early yet to name a specific date for a summit, because a simple “coffee hour” would not be enough to remedy relations between the two nations and both sides need to thoroughly prepare. Moscow and Washington nevertheless “do not need any mediators” to sort out their differences, he added.

Speaking earlier, Trump also praised the talks in Riyadh, calling them “very good” and saying he felt “much more confident” after the US-Russia meeting.

“I think I have the power to end this war, and I think it’s going very well.”

Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky stated ahead of the talks that Kiev would not recognize the results, as Ukrainian representatives were not invited. He postponed a planned visit to Saudi Arabia to not give the meeting “any legitimacy.” Trump hit back at the Ukrainian leader, saying Kiev has had three years to make a deal itself.