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Putin wants Ukraine ceasefire deal but not before ‘achieving its goals', says Russia

Putin wants Ukraine ceasefire deal but not before ‘achieving its goals', says Russia

Irish Independent13 hours ago
Claims come amid US threats of 'severe tariffs' and a rejuvenated pipeline for American weaponry to reach Kyiv
Russia says Vladimir Putin is open to peace after Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky suggested fresh ceasefire talks and the US threatened steep tariffs.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov claimed Putin was ready to negotiate, but that Russia remained committed to 'achieving its goals'.
Mr Peskov and other Russian officials have repeatedly rejected accusations from Kyiv and its western partners of stalling peace talks.
Meanwhile, Moscow continues to intensify its long-range attacks on Ukrainian cities, with more drones launched in a single night than during some entire months in 2024, and analysts say the barrages are likely to escalate.
Mr Peskov told state TV reporter Pavel Zarubin: 'President Putin has repeatedly spoken of his desire to bring the Ukrainian settlement to a peaceful conclusion as soon as possible. This is a long process, it requires effort, and it is not easy.
'The main thing for us is to achieve our goals. Our goals are clear.'
The Kremlin has insisted any peace deal should lead to Ukraine withdrawing from the four regions that Russia illegally annexed in September 2022 but never fully captured. It also wants Ukraine to renounce its bid to join Nato and accept strict limits on its armed forces, demands Kyiv and its western allies have rejected.
In his nightly address on Saturday, Mr Zelensky said his officials had proposed a new round of peace talks this week.
Russian state media reported last night that no date had yet been set for the negotiations but that Istanbul was likely to be the host city.
US President Donald Trump threatened Russia on July 14 with steep tariffs and announced a rejuvenated pipeline for American weapons to reach Ukraine, hardening his stance towards Moscow after months of frustration following unsuccessful negotiations aimed at ending the war.
The direct Russia-Ukraine negotiations in Istanbul resulted in several rounds of prisoner exchanges, but little else.
Mr Trump said he would implement 'severe tariffs' unless a peace deal is reached within 50 days. He provided few details on how they would be implemented, but suggested they would target Russia's trading partners in an effort to isolate Moscow in the global economy.
In addition, Mr Trump said European allies would buy 'billions and billions' of dollars of US military equipment to be transferred to Ukraine, replenishing the besieged country's supplies of weapons.
Included in the plan are Patriot air defence systems, a top priority for Ukraine as it fends off Russian drones and missiles. Doubts were recently raised about Mr Trump's commitment to supply Ukraine when the Pentagon paused shipments over concerns that US stockpiles were running low.
Elsewhere, Ukraine's air force said it shot down 18 of 57 Shahed-type and decoy drones launched by Russia overnight into yesterday, with seven more disappearing from radar.
Two women were injured in Zaporizhzhia, a southern Ukrainian region partly occupied by Russia, when a drone struck their house, according to the regional military administration.
Meanwhile, Russia's defence ministry said its forces had shot down 93 Ukrainian drones targeting Russian territory overnight.
Ten more drones were downed on the approach to the capital yesterday, according to mayor Sergei Sobyanin.
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