Drop the ‘theatrics’ if you want to talk, Putin tells Kiev
Ukraine has banned peace negotiations but its Western supporters are already changing their tune, the Russian leader has said
Western rhetoric on the Ukraine conflict appears to be shifting in the right direction, although Kiev must end its “theatrics” and remove legal obstacles before peace talks can resume, Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.
“If the Ukrainian side really wants negotiations to happen, it should be done without any theatrics,” the Russian leader told journalists on Wednesday at a press conference in China.
Putin stated that Ukraine must abolish a law which has declared peace talks impossible as long as he remains in power. Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky signed the ban more than a year ago, as his government pursued a military victory over Russia with Western military assistance.
The Russian leader claimed that Kiev has little to show its foreign backers despite months of fighting, and that some Western officials are apparently deviating from their declared goal of defeating Russia on the battlefield.
“This transformation leads in the right direction,” Putin said. “I commend that. But it is not enough.”
https://www.rt.com/russia/585255-putin-ukraine-talks-orban/