Following U.S. President-elect Donald Trump’s call for an “immediate ceasefire” in Ukraine, Russia announced on Monday that it is “open to negotiations” with Kyiv and welcomes peace initiatives.
Trump’s appeal came after his meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and French President Emmanuel Macron on November 7 in Paris during the reopening of Notre Dame Cathedral. Following the discussions, Trump took to his Truth Social platform, stating, “There should be an immediate ceasefire, and negotiations should begin. Too many lives are being needlessly wasted, too many families destroyed.”
Russia’s Foreign Ministry echoed this sentiment, quoting Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on X, formerly Twitter: “We have carefully read the statement by U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, made after his meeting with Macron and Zelenskyy in Paris. Russia is open to negotiations on Ukraine and welcomes peace initiatives. The conditions required to cease hostilities were outlined by President (Vladimir) Putin.”
The Kremlin further emphasized President Putin’s openness to peace proposals, particularly those from nations in the Global South and BRICS partners, including China, Brazil, South Africa, and Gulf nations like the UAE, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia, who are active in humanitarian efforts.
However, Peskov criticized Ukraine for its “rejection” of dialogue, accusing President Zelensky of enacting a decree that prohibits negotiations with Moscow. “Our stance is clear. The conditions for ending hostilities were laid out by President Putin in June during his speech at Russia’s Foreign Ministry. Ukraine has rejected negotiations and continues to do so, with Zelensky banning engagement with Russian leadership through his decree,” the statement asserted.
The Kremlin added that for peace talks to proceed, Zelensky must revoke his decree, restart dialogue based on the Istanbul agreements, and consider the current geopolitical realities.
Although Trump has frequently pledged to end the Ukraine war, substantive peace talks between the warring nations have yet to materialize. The conflict, which began with the annexation of Crimea in 2014, escalated into a full-scale war in February 2022 when Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine.
