Russian President Vladimir Putin has accepted a “permanent peace” contract with Ukraine, said US special envoy Steve Witkov.
President Donald Trump’s envoy made his claim in a television interview late Monday following “persuasive” talks with Putin in St. Petersburg last week. However, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov warned that the terms of agreement for the transaction were “not easy,” but that Ukraine and its European allies are asking Washington not to be fooled by Moscow’s delayed tactics on a ceasefire.
“I think we may be in a crisis of something very important to the world as a whole,” Witkov told Fox News in an interview following a meeting with the Russian leader on Friday.
He also noted that it could “re-change” unified national relations with Russia through “commercial opportunities” that bring stability to the region.
Friday’s meeting was the third between Russia and the US since January claimed that the dispute could be resolved within 24 hours of Trump’s return to the White House.
Despite the surge in diplomacy, there has been little meaningful progress in achieving a ceasefire, despite Ukraine’s agreement to the US proposal.
However, Russia has not offered any important concessions while continuing to attack its neighbors. On Sunday, it launched one of the most lethal attacks of the war against Ukraine’s Smie city.
Both sides accused each other of violating US mediated agreements to suspend attacks on each other’s energy facilities.
Derision game
Despite Witkoff’s optimistic report, Lavrov said in an interview with the Kommersant newspaper released Monday that it is “not easy” to agree to the “important elements” of the peace agreement.
However, he acknowledged that the Trump administration is trying to understand the “root cause” of the conflict. He said it was caused by the “action of Washington and Brussels” that “lead the current regime into power in Ukraine.”
Trump, who is wary of Ukraine by taking on many points on the Russian agenda regarding the Ukrainian war, supported that perspective as Ukrainian President Voldy Mirzelensky and former US President Joe Biden told reporters he was responsible for launching a conflict along with Putin, who invaded Ukraine in February 2022.
“Millions of people have died because of the three,” Trump said.
“Let’s say Putin’s number one, but Biden, No. 2 and Zelensky, who didn’t know what he was doing, continued to dismiss Ukrainian leaders’ attempts to protect their country by obtaining missiles.
“When you start a war, you know that you can win a war,” Trump said. “You won’t start a war with someone 20 times your size, and you hope people will give you some missiles.”
“I laugh at your goodness.”
Trump and Zelensky’s relationship has been strained ever since the US president surprised the world by opening talks with Russia in February. Critics say it gave the Kremlin a superiority in terms.
Negotiations over a deal that would provide U.S. priority access to Ukraine’s beneficial minerals have gotten off a rocky start after Trump and Zelensky had a fiery debate in their oval office six weeks ago.
Ukraine is worried about its omission from talks between the US and Russia.
“Before any kind of decision, any kind of negotiation, come and see people, civilians, warriors, hospitals, churches and children who have died,” Zelensky said in an interview to broadcast CBS’s 60-minute program on Sunday.
Meanwhile, Kiev’s European allies are urging Trump and his team not to be taken into account by Russia’s delayed tactics in the ceasefire talks.
Polish foreign minister Radoslau Sikorsky said Monday that following the attack on Smie, Trump and his administration wanted Putin to see “ock laughing at their good intentions.”