The Kremlin said on 19 March that trilateral talks between Russia, the USA and Ukraine on ending the Russian Federation war were on a “situational pause” after the United States and Israel launched a war against Iran.
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said he hoped the talks would continue after all sides agreed on schedules.
“This is a situational pause for obvious reasons. Therefore, as soon as there is an opportunity, as soon as the schedules of all three sides are agreed, first of all the schedules of our American mediators, when they can pay more attention to Ukrainian affairs, we hope that this pause will be interrupted and we will be able to hold another round of trilateral talks,” Peskov said when asked how long the pause could last.
Earlier, the Kremlin rejected a Financial Times report that US attempts to mediate a peaceful resolution to the war between Russia and Ukraine have stalled as President Donald Trump is losing interest in the talks.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on 16 March that Russian authorities had paid attention to such media reports but had come to a different conclusion. President Trump’s active references to Ukraine in his recent statements indicate the opposite. No interest, judging by the statements, President Trump has not lost interest. Moreover, he is persistently urging (Ukrainian President Volodymyr) Zelensky to make a deal,” Peskov told reporters.
The Russian leader’s spokesman also said that Russia was still interested in continuing talks to end the war, but the place and date of the next round of talks remained unclear.
US President Donald Trump earlier said in an interview with NBC News that a peace deal was hindered by the position of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. “I’m surprised that Zelensky doesn’t want to make a deal. Tell Zelensky to make a deal because Putin is willing to make a deal. Zelensky is much harder to make a deal with,” Trump said.
Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky said the U.S. should put more pressure on Russia, not him. “We don’t trust Russia, but I think and believe that the Americans really want to end this war. I hope they will help us, but more pressure should be put on Russia, not me,” Vladimir Zelensky told Politico.
The US-based Institute for the Study of War said Russia continues to reject any negotiated peace settlement with Ukraine that does not meet all of Russia’s demands, even if it would satisfy its territorial claims.
The first rounds of talks between Russia, Ukraine and the United States were held on 23-24 January and 4-5 February in the United Arab Emirates, while the third round was held on 17-18 February in Switzerland. The next meeting was planned to be held in early March, but the hostilities in the Middle East prevented its organisation.