Moscow said it will announce the next round of direct talks with Ukraine “soon” in its latest propaganda move.
Sergei Lavrov, Russia’s foreign minister, told a Kremlin security summit it would insist on Kyiv repealing all “discriminatory laws” in Ukraine as a condition of a new round of peace negotiations.
He said: “At these negotiations on May 16 in Istanbul, when they resumed, we insisted on the abolition of all discriminatory laws and will continue to do so at the next round of direct negotiations, which we will announce in the very near future.
“I would like to emphasise that we have always, for many years, before the special military operation and after its beginning, proposed and continue to propose to the Ukrainian side to resolve all problems, and they are becoming more serious every year, to resolve them through dialogue and diplomacy.”
The first direct Ukrainian-Russian talks since the Moscow invasion of 2022 were held on May 16 in Istanbul, Turkey, but neither Russian president Vladimir Putin or Donald Trump flew in for them.
Volodymyr Zelenskyy flew to Turkey for the talks and challenged Putin to meet him there – but the Russia leader did not, sending a junior delegation which Zelenskyy dismissed as “theatrical”.
The talks failed to achieve Ukraine’s aim of a full and unconditional ceasefire, but the two sides did agree to swap 1,000 prisoners of war each in the biggest exchange of the conflict.
The neutral status of Ukraine remains one of Russia’s key demands in the peace negotiations, Lavrov added.
Russia currently controls about 20% of Ukrainian territory including Crimea – Ukraine’s southern peninsula annexed by Moscow in 2014.
Kyiv has refused to concede any territory to Russia as part of a peace deal, including Crimea which is regarded as occupied Ukrainian territory, while Moscow wants assurances its neighbour will not join the Nato military alliance with the encroachment to its border angering the Kremlin.
Putin took charge of Russia when former President Boris Yeltsin stepped down on New Year’s Eve in 1999 with his parting instruction to his successor, then Prime Minister, being: “Take care of Russia!”
French president Emmanuel Macron said: “Ending the war in Ukraine is the goal we share with President Trump.
“Ukraine is ready for an unconditional ceasefire. President Zelensky reaffirmed it to me [at Pope Francis’s funeral]. He wishes to work alongside the Americans and the Europeans to make it happen.
“It is now up to Putin to prove that he truly wants peace. [His] proposed negotiations are a first step, but they are not sufficient. An unconditional ceasefire is not preceded by negotiations, by definition.”
One senior Kyiv aide said: “The main outcome of the [May 16] talks was that Putin bought time. The fact Putin was stalling for time became obvious to everyone, but this did make President Trump unhappy. Putin will continue to tell the United States that the negotiations are being disrupted by Ukraine and the EU while he wants peace.
“At the same time, Putin will make interesting cooperation proposals to the United States. In this way, Putin is playing not only against Ukraine but also against Europe – and it seems that Europe is clearly aware of this. Putin does not want (and for many reasons cannot) stop the war. This would be the collapse of his rule.
“Therefore, he must be forced to peace through strength. A new force has emerged that can make a significant contribution to negotiating and forcing Putin to peace: the Vatican.
“The Vatican has many contacts, opportunities, and influence. Its active involvement can be of great help. I also do not rule out China making a more active intervention in the negotiation process because China is also interested in European markets.
“The key is to maximise the combined efforts of all those interested in establishing a stable and lasting peace and forcing Russia to peace through strength.”