Putin Says No Final Peace Plan Draft Yet But Open to Talks
US President Donald Trump’s proposals for ending the war in Ukraine could be the basis for future agreements, but no final version exists yet, Russian President Vladimir Putin said, while signaling an openness to talks.
“In general, we agree that this can form the basis for future agreements,” Putin said Thursday during a news conference in Kyrgyzstan following the Collective Security Treaty Organization summit. “But it would be impolite of me to talk about any final versions now. There are none.”
The Kremlin confirmed on Wednesday that US presidential envoy Steve Witkoff was expected to visit Moscow next week and meet with Putin, as Trump continues his push for a resolution to Moscow’s nearly four-year-old invasion of Ukraine. Trump on Tuesday said there was “tremendous progress” made over the past week on his peace proposal, the original draft of which drew the ire of Ukrainians and Europeans.
Putin said that, according to his knowledge, the 28-point plan was rearranged into four parts by Ukraine and the US during talks in Geneva, and that can be the ground for talks. The US and Ukraine have said that the plan was re-drafted to contain 19 points.
“In general, we see that the American side takes into account our position, which was discussed before Anchorage and after Alaska,” Putin said. “We absolutely need to sit down somewhere and seriously discuss some specific things. We need to put everything into diplomatic language.”
Putin also defended Witkoff after Bloomberg News reported the US envoy advised Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov in an Oct. 14 phone call on how the Russian leader should broach the issue of a peace plan with Trump. He called Witkoff intelligent and polite, and defended the two aides’ conversation.
“Mr. Witkoff is coming, judging by everything, to Moscow under the order of President Trump to carry out negotiations with us,” he said. “It would be surprising if while talking with Ushakov he would swear at us.” He said Witkoff is trying to re-set US-Russian relations.
Recent US sanctions on the country’s top oil producers indicate the US is still defending its own interests, according to Putin.
Source : Bloomberg.com
