Lyudmila Zhernovskaya14:46, 05/17/24

He again complained to journalists that Russia had been deceived.

Russian ruler Putin said that Moscow will not agree to negotiations based on the “peace formula” of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky.

He once again said that Russia was “simply deceived” during negotiations at the beginning of a full-scale war. Putin says they withdrew occupation forces from Kyiv to sign a peace treaty, but Kyiv “threw all the agreements in the trash.” “Now we have to understand who we can deal with and who we can trust,” he said.

He said that Moscow will not allow ultimatums to be presented to it, and the Ukrainian idea of ​​ending the war “is based on wishful thinking, not the real situation.” He calls the Istanbul Agreements the basis for the negotiation process.

“[Ukraine] wanted to gain an advantage on the battlefield, to achieve a strategic position, but it didn’t work out – well, now here are our conditions. The tree has fallen from grace, or what? Why on earth? Of course, we will proceed from the realities that are developing on the ground,” – he stated.

Putin also complained that Russia was not invited to the “peace summit” in Switzerland, even though it was ready to participate in peace negotiations on Ukraine. “They don’t see us at the peace conference on Ukraine in Switzerland, they don’t see us – don’t,” he added.

It is worth recalling that earlier, the press secretary of the Russian Embassy in Bern, Vladimir Khokhlov, said that Moscow would not accept an invitation to the summit in Switzerland, even if it was invited.

Putin on negotiations

Negotiations with the Russian Federation: latest news

Russia continues to make conflicting statements about peace talks. They claim that they are ready for them, but reject Ukrainian initiatives. Moscow also stated that it does not take  the “Global Peace Summit”  in Switzerland seriously.

Recently, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov was asked to imagine that Ukraine and the West offered to sit down at the negotiating table. He was asked what he would do. Lavrov replied that there was “ no one to talk to .” 

Vladimir Zelensky said that it is necessary to work out a detailed plan together with the world before talking with the Russian Federation about ending the war.

(c)UNIAN 2024