AFP
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that the "conditions" for a potential meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky had not yet been met.
"I have nothing against it in general, it is possible, but certain conditions must be met ... unfortunately, we are still far from creating such conditions," Putin told reporters at the Kremlin.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier on Thursday called for a face-to-face meeting with Putin to end war.
Putin said in June he was ready to meet the Ukrainian president, but only during a "final phase" of negotiations on ending the more than three-year conflict.
He also said he hopes to meet next week with US President Donald Trump, possibly in the United Arab Emirates, confirming earlier reports from the White House that the two men were planning a meeting.
Diplomatic push
The increased diplomatic activity came on the eve of a White House deadline for progress towards ending the war in Ukraine.
Trump a day earlier hailed talks between his envoy Steve Witkoff and Putin as "highly productive" but US officials still vowed to impose sanctions on Moscow's trading partners.
Zelensky on Thursday spoke on a call with Trump along with European leaders.
"We in Ukraine have repeatedly said that finding real solutions can be truly effective at the level of leaders," Zelensky wrote on social media.
"It is necessary to determine the timing for such a format and the range of issues to be addressed," he added.
The Ukrainian leader said Thursday morning that he had planned to hold "several" conversations throughout the course of the day including with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as well as French and Italian officials.
"There will also be communication at the level of national security advisers," Zelensky added.
"The main thing is for Russia, which started this war, to take real steps to end its aggression," Zelensky added.
In a social media post following his call with the German chancellor, Zelensky said that Europe must be a part of talks on ending the Russian invasion.
"The war is happening in Europe, and Ukraine is an integral part of Europe – we are already in negotiations on EU accession. Therefore, Europe must be a participant in the relevant processes," he said.
Ukrainians eager for peace
After more than three years of war, Ukrainians are increasingly eager for a settlement that ends the fight against Russia's invasion, according to a new Gallup poll published Thursday – although only about a quarter of Ukrainians surveyed expect the guns to fall silent within the next 12 months. Almost seven out of 10 respondents said they supported a negotiated end to the conflict as soon as possible.
The enthusiasm for a negotiated deal is a sharp reversal from 2022 – the year the war began – when Gallup found that about three-quarters of Ukrainians wanted to keep fighting until victory. Now only about one-quarter hold that view, with support for continuing the war declining steadily across all regions and demographic groups.
The findings were based on samples of 1,000 or more respondents ages 15 and older living in Ukraine. Some territories under entrenched Russian control, representing about 10 percent of the population, were excluded from surveys conducted after 2022 due to lack of access.
"I have nothing against it in general, it is possible, but certain conditions must be met ... unfortunately, we are still far from creating such conditions," Putin told reporters at the Kremlin.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky earlier on Thursday called for a face-to-face meeting with Putin to end war.
Putin said in June he was ready to meet the Ukrainian president, but only during a "final phase" of negotiations on ending the more than three-year conflict.
He also said he hopes to meet next week with US President Donald Trump, possibly in the United Arab Emirates, confirming earlier reports from the White House that the two men were planning a meeting.
Diplomatic push
The increased diplomatic activity came on the eve of a White House deadline for progress towards ending the war in Ukraine.
Trump a day earlier hailed talks between his envoy Steve Witkoff and Putin as "highly productive" but US officials still vowed to impose sanctions on Moscow's trading partners.
Zelensky on Thursday spoke on a call with Trump along with European leaders.
"We in Ukraine have repeatedly said that finding real solutions can be truly effective at the level of leaders," Zelensky wrote on social media.
"It is necessary to determine the timing for such a format and the range of issues to be addressed," he added.
The Ukrainian leader said Thursday morning that he had planned to hold "several" conversations throughout the course of the day including with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, as well as French and Italian officials.
"There will also be communication at the level of national security advisers," Zelensky added.
"The main thing is for Russia, which started this war, to take real steps to end its aggression," Zelensky added.
In a social media post following his call with the German chancellor, Zelensky said that Europe must be a part of talks on ending the Russian invasion.
"The war is happening in Europe, and Ukraine is an integral part of Europe – we are already in negotiations on EU accession. Therefore, Europe must be a participant in the relevant processes," he said.
Ukrainians eager for peace
After more than three years of war, Ukrainians are increasingly eager for a settlement that ends the fight against Russia's invasion, according to a new Gallup poll published Thursday – although only about a quarter of Ukrainians surveyed expect the guns to fall silent within the next 12 months. Almost seven out of 10 respondents said they supported a negotiated end to the conflict as soon as possible.
The enthusiasm for a negotiated deal is a sharp reversal from 2022 – the year the war began – when Gallup found that about three-quarters of Ukrainians wanted to keep fighting until victory. Now only about one-quarter hold that view, with support for continuing the war declining steadily across all regions and demographic groups.
The findings were based on samples of 1,000 or more respondents ages 15 and older living in Ukraine. Some territories under entrenched Russian control, representing about 10 percent of the population, were excluded from surveys conducted after 2022 due to lack of access.
