Putin allows Europe's role in Ukraine peace talks
Photo: Vladimir Putin, Russian president (Getty Images)
Putin says Europe is needed in Ukraine talks, but suggests the deal is still distant, according to Reuters.
Putin told Russian state television that Trump was approaching the Russia-Ukraine conflict rationally and not emotionally, but gave the impression it might not end as soon as the US president would like.
Putin added that his telephone conversation with Trump and recent talks between the United States and Russia in Riyadh touched on resolving the conflict in Ukraine, but it was not discussed in detail,
"We only agreed that we would move toward this. And in this case, of course, we are not refusing the participation of European countries," he said in an interview.
Putin emphasized Europe had "nothing with" the talks in Riyadh, as they were focused on establishing trust between Moscow and Washington, which he said was key.
"To resolve complex and rather acute issues, such as related to Ukraine, both Russia and the United States must take the first step," Putin said. "What does it consist of? This first step should be devoted to increasing the level of trust between the two states," he added.
The next few rounds of talks and high-level contacts will be devoted to building that trust, he said, but once the talks turn to settling the conflict, the presence of European partners will be logical.
"Their participation in the negotiating process is needed. We never rejected that, we held constant discussions with them."
US-Russia negotiations
Last week, a meeting took place in the capital of Saudi Arabia between delegations from Washington and Moscow. After the talks, US State Secretary Marco Rubio stated that he was "convinced of Russia's readiness to begin a serious process to determine how the war between Russia and Ukraine can be ended."
Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that Kyiv does not recognize talks results in Riyadh, where the US and Russia discussed Ukraine without Ukraine's participation.
United States Special Envoy for Ukraine and Russia Keith Kellogg stated that he doesn’t see Europe physically at the negotiating table on Ukraine. This sparked outrage and criticism among EU countries.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed to deliver a unified message on Ukraine during their meeting with Trump.
On February 24, The Times reported that Starmer and Macron aim to dissuade Trump from holding separate talks with Putin.
