Putin says Zelenskyy is an obstacle to peace
25 February 09:12
Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin claims that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is obstructing the achievement of a peaceful settlement. This was reported by Russian media, Komersant ukrainskyi reports.
According to Putin, Zelenskyy is “a factor in the decomposition of society, the army and the state in the elections.”
Russia and the United States want to achieve peace as soon as possible, and Zelenskyy is preventing this, Putin said.
“Russia, as an opponent of the Kyiv regime, would be interested in Zelenskyy retaining his power. But this decomposition of statehood is not in the interests of Ukraine,”
– the Kremlin leader said.
Putin claims that Zelensky is allegedly avoiding peace talks with Russia, as this will quickly lead to the need to lift martial law and hold elections.
Putin also offered Trump rare earth metals from the Ukrainian occupied territories.
“Russia is ready to offer cooperation to the United States on rare earth metals, in particular in Donbas and Novorossiya… A possible agreement on subsoil between the United States and Ukraine has nothing to do with Russia. The resources of rare earth metals in Ukraine still need to be assessed,”
– the Russian dictator added.
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Negotiations in Saudi Arabia
on February 18, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Russian Assistant Prime Minister Yuri Ushakov met in Saudi Arabia with an American delegation, represented by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Advisor Mike Volz and Special Envoy for the Middle East Steve Witkoff.
After the talks, the US State Department reported that the delegations agreed to “eliminate irritants” in bilateral relations and continue to work on preparing talks on Russia’s war against Ukraine.
The two sides also agreed to appoint high-level groups for further talks on Ukraine.
Jackie Heinrich, a Fox News correspondent at the White House, reported that the United States and Russia are discussing a three-stage peace plan for Ukraine, which consists of the following stages
- A ceasefire.
- Holding elections in Ukraine.
- Conclusion of a peace agreement.
Trump’s proposals to Putin
According to inaccurate information from former US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul(he used the word “allegedly”), Trump offered Putin (McFaul’s wording is retained)
- ukrainian territory;
- ukraine’s non-membership in NATO;
- no American soldiers in Ukraine;
- withdrawal of American soldiers from Europe, including from frontline countries;
- easing of sanctions.
Putin, according to McFaul, has not offered anything yet.
