Business Standard

Putin ‘open’ to talks but sets conditions

Biden prepared to meet him to end Ukraine war

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Russian President Vladimir Putin is open to talks on a possible settlement to the conflict in Ukraine and believes in a diplomatic solution, the Kremlin said on Friday.

The premier replying to US President Joe Biden’ comment stating his willingnes­s to speak with Putin but with conditions, said the the West must accept Moscow’s demands.

Amidst this, Putin told German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday that the German and Western line on Ukraine was ‘destructiv­e’ and urged Berlin to rethink its approach.

Biden, speaking beside French President Emmanuel Macron, said the only way to end the war in Ukraine was for Putin to pull troops out and that if Putin was looking to end the conflict then Biden would be prepared to speak to him. In response, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, “The president of the Russian Federation has always been, is and remains open to negotiatio­ns in order to ensure our interests,”.

Meanwhile, Speaking at the White House, Biden said that he and Macron agreed to work together to hold Putin accountabl­e for what he cast as a “barbaric” war - and that the idea of defeating Ukraine was beyond comprehens­ion.

Musk invited to Ukraine Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy invited Elon Musk to visit his war-ravaged nation after Musk floated the idea of a peace deal that would give major concession­s to Russia.

Musk played a key role restoring Internet service in Ukraine, Zelenskiy told the New York Times, saying “life was maintained” thanks to the deployment of his Starlink satellite communicat­ions system. But sometime later, “it seems that Elon began to change his opinion,” Zelenskiy said.

THE PRESIDENT OF THE RUSSIAN FEDERATION HAS ALWAYS BEEN, IS AND REMAINS OPEN TO NEGOTIATIO­NS IN ORDER TO ENSURE OUR INTERESTS,”

DMITRY PESKOV, Kremlin spokesman

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