Source : NEW INDIAN EXPRESS NEWS
Anti-Russian rhetoric
Kyiv and the West have rejected all of them, saying Russia’s offensive is nothing more than an imperial-style land grab.
“We do not exclude that during these talks we will be able to agree on some new ceasefire,” Putin said.
But he also accused Ukraine’s Western backers of wanting to ‘continue war with Russia’ and — without mentioning the specific Ukraine-European proposal for a 30-day ceasefire — slammed European ‘ultimatums’ and ‘anti-Russian rhetoric.’
The address in the Kremlin, attended by AFP, came hours after French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk gathered in Kyiv in a symbolic show of support for Ukraine.
Together with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, they pressed Russia on Saturday to accept a 30-day unconditional ceasefire starting Monday, threatening Moscow with new sanctions if it did not comply.
The United States and other countries back the proposal, they said.
“We have just now… decided to support a ceasefire which will begin next Monday, without any preconditions,” Macron told a press conference.
The leaders also held a video conference with their counterparts from about 20 other member countries of the coalition of the willing supporting Ukraine.
“In the event of a violation of this ceasefire, we have agreed that massive sanctions will be prepared and coordinated between Europeans and Americans,” Macron said.
The United States and Ukraine have for weeks pushed a similar proposal, which Russia has not accepted.
US President Donald Trump had threatened to walk out of talks over the lack of progress on ending the war, after vowing during the US election campaign to halt the conflict within a day of taking office.
Kyiv and its allies had feared that Trump was pivoting towards Moscow because he had clashed with Zelensky. But Trump has recently expressed growing impatience with Putin.
SOURCE :- NEW INDIAN EXPRESS
