Moscow Rejects Overt Talks
Hopes for direct talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy faded on Friday after Moscow officially discounted an immediate summit. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov declared “no meeting” was being scheduled, undermining US-facilitated moves to organize peace talks. His statement followed just days after US President Donald Trump suggested that the two leaders had agreed in principle to sit down after top-level talks at the White House.
Lavrov, in a conversation with NBC’s Meet the Press, indicated that Putin was “prepared to meet Zelenskyy” but argued that there was still no agreed agenda. “The agenda is not ready at all,” he emphasized, raising questions about Trump’s rosy schedule.
Ukraine Pushes Back
Zelenskyy, welcoming NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte in Kyiv, rejected Kremlin’s version, explaining that Ukraine signed no agreements with Russia. “Ukraine has no agreements with the Russians,” he explained, noting that Kyiv coordinated only with Trump over next diplomatic moves.
The Ukrainian leader went further on Thursday, accusing Moscow of willingly perching on the fence. “Russia is attempting to squirm out of having a meeting,” Zelenskyy stated, saying that the Kremlin would rather continue its attack than agree to negotiate.
The tension was played out against the backdrop of a Kyiv air raid warning during Rutte’s visit, which highlighted the continued unpredictability of the war, which is in its fourth year.
Dispute Over Security Guarantees
At the center of the frozen diplomacy is the contentious issue of security guarantees for Ukraine. Trump previously said that Moscow was willing to accept some Western-supported assurances on Kyiv’s safety. However, Russia immediately dismissed that prospect, labelling talks without Moscow’s direct participation “a utopia, a road to nowhere.
Zelenskyy, however, stressed that security assurances were key, such as the deployment of foreign troops in Ukraine to discourage further Russian aggression. “When Russia brings up the question of security guarantees, I simply do not yet know who is threatening them,” he added. Moscow has, however, consistently argued that NATO enlargement and Ukraine’s bid to join it were among the primary justifications for its invasion.
Lavrov corroborated this hardline position, stating Washington’s suggestions ranging from vetoing NATO membership to resolving border conflicts were refused point-blank by Zelenskyy. “Zelenskyy said no to everything,” he reported to NBC.
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Historic Betrayal Shapes Today’s Talks
The quarrel over guarantees runs deep. Ukraine gave up its nuclear weapons in 1994 in exchange for the Budapest Memorandum, which committed Russia, the US, and the UK to defending its sovereignty. Moscow first broke that promise by seizing Crimea in 2014 and then by invading Ukraine full force in 2022. The conflict has subsequently claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced millions, making Ukraine skeptical about making promises in the future.
Rutte seconded the Kyiv anxiety, declaring strong guarantees to guarantee “Russia will respect any agreement and never try to take Ukrainian territory again.”
Peace for the time being, however, with Moscow closing down the prospects for direct talks and the attempts at Washington mediation faltering, remains an elusive dream.
