The Kremlin welcomed recent remarks made by Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy regarding potential peace talks to put an end to the ongoing war.
“This is better than statements that any contacts with the Russian side and with the Russian head of state are excluded,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in Moscow on Monday.
“Of course, talking in one tone or another about dialogue is much better than talking about the intention to fight to the last Ukrainian.”
In an interview with the BBC, Zelenskyy said earlier that he could also talk to Russian President Vladimir Putin, although he had previously excluded this possibility by decree.
In the interview, Zelenskyy reaffirmed his willingness in principle to negotiate with Russian representatives at a new peace summit. “And whether it will be Putin or not makes no difference,” he said.
Russia previously ruled out Zelenskyy attending any peace summit and also questioned his legitimacy as president. Now, however, Peskov said it remained to be seen what exactly was behind Zelenskyy’s latest remarks.
In response to Russia’s illegal annexation of the Ukrainian regions of Kherson, Zaporizhzhya, Donetsk and Luhansk in autumn 2022, Zelenskyy issued a decree that Ukraine would not hold peace talks with Russia while Putin was president.
Peskov also made it clear that Russia was taking a wait-and-see approach following U.S. President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from the U.S. presidential election campaign.
As long as Biden remains in office, nothing will change in terms of U.S. aid for Ukraine, which will prolong the war, according to the spokesman.
“Nothing good is to be expected,” said Peskov of Biden.
Russia’s priority is to pursue its own goals in the neighboring country to the end, he added.
Nevertheless, the future of Russia-U.S. relations is of huge importance to Moscow because they are “now going through the worst time in their history.”
Peskov was also cautious about the role of U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris, who Biden had endorsed as his replacement in the 2024 race on the Democratic ticket.
So far, she had not distinguished herself through any concrete contribution to the relationship between the two countries, but only through rather unfriendly remarks about Russia, he said.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba will travel to China for a three-day trip starting on Tuesday, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
Kuleba’s visit comes at the invitation of Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, the ministry said.
The chief topic of the talks will be ending Russia’s attacks on Ukraine and China’s role in achieving an enduring and just peace, it said.
In Moscow, the Kremlin reacted cautiously to the announcement of the visit.
“For us, our relations with China are the main thing,” said Peskov. “We intend to continue following the path of developing Russian-Chinese relations in all areas.”
Kyiv has repeatedly tried to get Beijing on its side, despite the “no limits” partnership declared by Chinese President Xi Jinping and Putin in February 2022.
Kyiv’s Western allies view China as one of Russia’s main supporters, although Beijing says it takes a neutral stance in the war.
