World
India
The Kremlin has confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin remains open to pursuing peace in Ukraine but cautioned that the complex nature of the conflict makes rapid progress difficult, despite U.S. pressure for a quick resolution, Reuters reported on Wednesday.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov addressed the situation on Wednesday, stressing that Putin is committed to political and diplomatic methods for resolving the war. “The president remains open to political and diplomatic methods of resolving this conflict,” Peskov told reporters, according to Reuters. He, however, noted that while Putin had expressed a willingness for direct talks with Kyiv, no response has been received from the Ukrainian government.
“We understand that Washington is willing to achieve a quick success in this process,” Peskov said in English. “But the root causes of the Ukraine war are too complex to be resolved in one day,” he added in Russian, as reported by TASS.
Earlier this year, Putin indicated that Russia was open to a U.S. proposal for a ceasefire but emphasised that any cessation of hostilities must come with key conditions. “Fighting could not be paused until a number of crucial conditions were worked out or clarified,” he had reportedly said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, however, has insisted that any meaningful progress toward peace depends on Russia first agreeing to an unconditional ceasefire.
Putin had earlier this week announced a three-day ceasefire (to take effect in May) to coincide with the 80th anniversary of the Soviet Union’s victory over Nazi Germany in World War II.
ALSO READ: Man Charged With Terrorism Offences After Arrest at Israeli Embassy in London
