Russian President Vladimir Putin says he reached understandings with US President Donald Trump over the end of the Ukraine war during their meeting in Alaska last month.
However, he did not clarify if he would agree to peace talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, which Trump reportedly set a deadline for. Speaking at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in China, Putin maintained his rationale for the invasion of Ukraine, once again blaming the West.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff noted that Putin had agreed on security guarantees for Ukraine as part of a prospective peace deal, although Moscow has yet to confirm this aspect.
Putin emphasized the collaborative support from Chinese and Indian leaders, thanking them for their roles in potentially resolving the Ukrainian crisis. Both countries are significant purchasers of Russian oil, which some critics argue undermines Western sanctions aimed at diminishing the Russian economy affected by the conflict.
He expressed optimism that the understandings reached with Trump would propel forward a path to peace in Ukraine.
Addressing the ongoing conflict, he reiterated his perspective that the crisis was ignited not by Russia's actions but by a coup in Ukraine, allegedly supported by the West. He persistently opposed Ukraine's integration into NATO, a point that has seen unanimous rejection by Western allies.
The situation escalated in 2014 when Russia annexed Crimea, followed by the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
Putin's remarks come on the heels of a significant aerial attack on Ukraine, indicating an intense military campaign from Russia, while French President Emmanuel Macron mentioned a looming deadline for Putin to respond to Trump's peace proposal.
If there is no agreement, Macron suggested it would demonstrate to the international community that Putin has manipulated Trump’s overtures.
Trump had previously claimed he could resolve the Ukraine conflict quickly but has since diverted calls for a ceasefire toward seeking a permanent peace arrangement. He insists no NATO membership for Ukraine will be part of such a deal, while hinting at security guarantees involving the US's direct support in defending Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Zelensky anticipates a security framework in the forthcoming week but criticized the West's proposals as unbalanced, stating that they effectively further provoke Russia.
