The Kremlin said Wednesday that it welcomes the prospect of U.S.-mediated peace talks with Ukraine but claimed that legal obstacles introduced by Kyiv still prevent negotiations from taking place.
U.S. President Donald Trump told Congress on Tuesday that he received a letter from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky expressing a willingness to negotiate peace. Trump also claimed he had received “strong signals” from Russia that it was “ready for peace.”
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov called the possibility of talks a “positive” development but noted unresolved “nuances.”
“The question is who to negotiate with?” Peskov told reporters, pointing to a September 2022 decree in which Zelensky formally declared negotiations with Russian President Vladimir Putin “impossible.”
“The general approach is positive, but the nuances have not yet changed,” he said.
Russian authorities have regularly questioned the legitimacy of Zelensky’s presidency, arguing that his mandate expired in May 2024 after five years in office. According to Ukrainian law, elections cannot be held during martial law, which was introduced after Russian forces invaded the country in February 2022.
Trump has pledged to swiftly end Russia’s war against Ukraine. Since taking office in January, he has sought to reset relations with Russia, held a tense White House meeting with Zelensky and stunned U.S. allies by pausing military aid to Ukraine.
Peskov praised the U.S. military aid freeze as a “solution which could really push the Kyiv regime toward a peace process.”
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