Talks between Russia and the U.S. on ending the almost four-year war in Ukraine were productive, but much work left, Yuri Ushakov, a senior advisor to President Vladimir Putin, told reporters on Wednesday.
Putin met U.S. President Donald Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner in the Kremlin in discussions that began late Tuesday as part of a renewed push by the Trump administration to arrange a peace deal. Both sides agreed not to disclose the substance of the talks.
Ushakov termed the five-hour conversation "rather useful, constructive, rather substantive," but said that the framework of the U.S. peace proposal was discussed rather than "specific wording."
When asked if peace was becoming closer or farther away following these discussions, Ushakov responded, "Not further, that's for sure."
"But there's still a lot of work to be done, both in Washington and in Moscow. That is the consensus. And communications will go on," the official stated.
Additionally, according to Putin's assistant, "so far, a compromise hasn't been found" on the territorial dispute; without it, the Kremlin sees "no resolution to the crisis."
"Some of the American recommendations appear more or less acceptable, but they need to be examined. Some of the terminology that was proposed to us doesn't suit us. So, the process will continue," Ushakov added.
Ushakov would not elaborate, but there were other points of contention. "We could agree on some things, and the president verified this to his interlocutors.
Other things provoked criticism, and the president also didn't disguise our critical and even unfavorable attitude toward a number of suggestions," he stated.
Trump peace plan is heart of effort to end the war The meeting took place a few days after U.S. officials met with a Ukrainian delegation in Florida, which U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio described as cautiously positive.
The main focus of the endeavor is Trump's peace plan, which was made public last month and sparked worries about its apparent strong bias in favor of Moscow.
The proposal fulfilled some of the Kremlin's basic demands that Kyiv has rejected as nonstarters, such as Ukraine relinquishing the entire eastern portion of the Donbas to Russia and renouncing its quest to join NATO.
Negotiators have hinted the framework has changed, but it's not clear how. Ushakov said various variants of a peace plan were being considered at the negotiations.
The official refused to delve into details, adding only: "At first there was one version, then this version was revised, and instead of one document, a few more appeared."
On Tuesday, Putin accused Kyiv's European allies of obstructing the U.S. led attempts to end the war. "They don't have a peace agenda, they're on the side of the war," Putin said of the Europeans.
Putin 's claims appeared to be his latest attempt to foment conflict between Trump and European countries and lay the way for exempting Moscow from blame for any lack of progress.
He blamed Moscow for "blocking the entire peace process" by accusing Europe of changing peace plans with "demands that are absolutely unacceptable to Russia."
He also restated his long-held position that Russia has no ambitions to attack Europe a concern often voiced by various European countries.
"But if Europe suddenly wants to launch a war with us and initiates it, we are ready straight now. That cannot be disputed," Putin declared.
Since Russia launched a full-scale invasion of a sovereign European nation in 2022, European governments have spent billions of dollars to support Ukraine militarily and financially, wean themselves off of Russia's energy supply, and bolster their own armed forces to prevent Moscow from using force to annex more territory.
They believe that if Russia obtains what it wants in Ukraine, it will have free reign to attack or disrupt other European countries, which already have suffered incursions from Russian drones and fighter jets, and an alleged massive Russian sabotage effort.
Although no Europeans seem to have been consulted on the initial concept, Trump's peace plan depends on Europe to supply the majority of the funding and security guarantees for a postwar Ukraine. That's why European countries have sought to guarantee that peace initiatives include their concerns, too.
Coinciding with Witkoff's journey, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy flew to Ireland, continuing his trips to European countries that have helped sustain his country's battle against Russia's invasion.
Negotiations with high stakes After Trump's original 28-point plan was reduced to 20 items in Sunday's talks between U.S. and Ukrainian officials in Florida, Zelenskyy stated on Tuesday that he was anticipating quick findings from the U.S. envoys in Moscow regarding whether talks might proceed.
"These messages are essential for the future and the subsequent actions. Such moves will change throughout today, even hour by hour, I suppose," Zelenskyy stated during a news conference in Dublin with Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin.
"If the signals show fair play with our partners, we then might meet very soon, meet with the American delegation," he stated. "There is a lot of dialogue, but we need outcomes.
Our people are dying every day," Zelenskyy remarked. "I am ready to meet with President Trump. It all hinges on today's talks."
Building on progress in Florida After months of futility in trying to stop the bloodshed, Trump deployed diplomats to seek traction for his peace plans.
Asked about a prospective meeting between Putin and Trump, presidential advisor Ushakov said it would depend on the development of the peace initiative.
The negotiations have followed parallel lines so far, with Rubio sitting down with Ukrainian officials. Zelenskyy reported that he had a meeting on Tuesday with the Ukrainian group that had just returned from talks with American delegates in Florida. According to Rubio, such discussions made headway.
Zelenskyy said the Florida negotiations had as their cue a paper that both sides wrote at an earlier conference in Geneva. The Ukrainian leader stated that paper was now "finalized," although he didn't clarify what that meant.
Ukrainian diplomats are working to guarantee that European partners are "substantially involved" in decision-making, Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app, and warned of what he said were Russian disinformation tactics intended at directing the negotiations.
European leaders want a say Zelenskyy met with political leaders and MPs in Dublin on his first official visit. Ireland is officially neutral and isn't a member of NATO but has supplied nonlethal military help to Ukraine.
More than 100,000 Ukrainians have relocated to Ireland since Russia launched its war on Feb. 24, 2022. It remains unclear how envoys are going to bridge the gbetween the two sides on such basic differences as who keeps what area. European authorities warn the road to peace will be long.
After being mostly ignored by Washington, European leaders want their voices to be heard. Additionally, they are developing guarantees for Ukraine's future security.
Zelenskyy under duress Zelenskyy is under enormous pressure in one of the darkest phases of the battle for his country.
He needs to deal with a corruption crisis that has reached the highest levels of his government, find funding to keep Ukraine solvent, and keep Russia at bay on the battlefield in addition to handling diplomatic pressure.
Late on Monday, the Kremlin declared that Russian soldiers had taken control of Pokrovsk, a crucial city in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk province. Zelenskyy, however, stated in Paris that battle was still ongoing in Pokrovsk on Monday.
Ukraine's general staff on Tuesday also dismissed Russia's claims to have occupied Pokrovsk, saying it was a propaganda stunt. The Ukrainian army is readying extra logistic channels to send supplies to troops in the area, the Facebook post said.
