MOSCOW (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday ridiculed the planned Ukraine round. peace negotiations in switzerlandwarned that Moscow would not accept coercive plans that ignored its interests.
The Swiss government announced Wednesday that it will hold a high-level international conference in June to chart a path towards peace in Ukraine after more than two years of fighting, raising hopes that Russia may one day join the peace process. expressed.
Putin accused Russia of not being invited to participate in the June talks, pointing to Switzerland’s recognition that a peace process cannot happen without Russia.
“They are not inviting us there,” Putin said. “Moreover, they think that there is nothing we can do there, but at the same time they say that it is impossible to decide anything without us. It would have been interesting if it were not so sad.”
Russia fires Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy peace official It called on Russia to withdraw its troops, pay reparations to Ukraine and face an international tribunal for its actions.
In a meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in Moscow on Thursday, Putin said Russia was ready to negotiate but would never accept “plans that are unrelated to reality.”
President Putin has reiterated that he sent troops to Ukraine in February 2022 to protect Russia’s interests and prevent Ukraine from becoming a serious security threat to Russia if it joins NATO. I’ve said it. Kiev and its allies denounced the Russian military operation as an unprovoked act of aggression.
President Putin has insisted that the Russian military will have the upper hand after the war. Ukraine’s counterattack failed Last year, he argued that Ukraine and the West would have to accept a settlement on Moscow’s terms “sooner or later.”
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Last week, I warned about the possibility of negotiations. to end fighting in ukraine It can only succeed if it considers Moscow’s interests and dismisses the planned series of peace talks as a Western ploy to rally broader international support for Kiev.
