Russia’s high diplomat Sergey Lavrov accuses Ukrainian President Zelenskyy of claiming ‘no to the whole lot’.
Russian Overseas Minister Sergey Lavrov has mentioned there isn’t any agenda for a possible summit between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy and that there isn’t any plan for such a gathering.
Talking to NBC’s “Meet the Press with Kristen Welker”, Lavrov mentioned in feedback aired on Friday that Putin had made clear he was prepared to satisfy Zelenskyy to debate a attainable deal to finish the warfare in Ukraine, offered there was a correct agenda for such a session, one thing he mentioned was missing for now.
Each Russia and Ukraine are attempting to point out US President Donald Trump that they’re able to attempt to strike a peace deal, one thing the US chief has mentioned he desires to dealer, whereas accusing the opposite of not being honest or prepared to barter in good religion.
“Putin is able to meet with Zelenskyy when the agenda could be prepared for a summit. And this agenda shouldn’t be prepared in any respect,” Lavrov instructed NBC, saying no assembly was due to this fact deliberate for now.
Lavrov mentioned Russia had agreed to point out flexibility on numerous points raised by Trump at a US-Russia summit final week, however accused Ukraine of not exhibiting the identical flexibility in talks with Trump and European allies that adopted in Washington.
“He [Trump] clearly indicated – it was very clear to all people that there are a number of rules which Washington believes should be accepted, together with no NATO membership [for Ukraine], together with the dialogue of territorial points, and Zelenskyy mentioned no to the whole lot,” mentioned Lavrov.
“He even mentioned no to, as I mentioned, to cancelling laws banning the Russian language. How can we meet with an individual who’s pretending to be a frontrunner?”
‘Moscow desires jap Donbas’
Trump had imposed an August 8 deadline for Putin to conform to an finish to the warfare or face new sanctions towards Russia and nations that purchase its oil, however as a substitute agreed to satisfy the Kremlin chief at a summit in Alaska final Friday.
Since then, Russia has proven little motion, sustaining most of its longstanding calls for whereas proposing to freeze the entrance line in two Ukrainian areas it claims as its personal, and expressing a readiness to doubtlessly hand again comparatively small items of Ukrainian territory it controls.
Putin desires Ukraine to surrender all the jap Donbas area, resign ambitions to hitch NATO, stay impartial and hold Western troops in another country, three sources accustomed to top-level Kremlin pondering have instructed the Reuters information company.
Zelenskyy, who has mentioned he doesn’t need to “present” Russia any territory, mentioned on Friday the Kremlin was doing the whole lot it might to make it possible for a gathering between him and Putin didn’t happen. He referred to as on Ukraine’s allies to use new sanctions on Moscow if it confirmed no want to finish the warfare.
