Russia, US hold phone talks on Ukraine peace plan

(MENAFN) The Kremlin reported on Friday that officials from the Russian and US presidential administrations held discussions by phone concerning a potential settlement in Ukraine, following recent consultations in Miami.

During a briefing in Moscow, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov explained that Russian presidential aide Yury Ushakov and several senior White House officials reviewed a draft peace plan during the call. He stated:
"After Dmitriev briefed the president on the results of his trip to America and his contacts with the Americans, this information was analyzed, at the instruction of President Putin, there was a contact between representatives of the administrations of Russia and the United States."

Peskov noted that Moscow had carefully reviewed the information provided by Special Envoy Kirill Dmitriev after his US meetings. On the outcome of the phone talks, he said that Russia and the United States had "agreed to continue the dialogue."

The Miami consultations over the weekend included US representatives Steven Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who is President Donald Trump’s son-in-law. Peskov declined to disclose Moscow’s evaluation of the draft plan brought back by Dmitriev, cautioning that early disclosure could "negatively affect the negotiation process."

Responding to claims by a Ukrainian presidential adviser that Ukraine lacks the resources to hold elections, Peskov said Moscow is unsure how official these statements are, adding:
"We have heard no official statements from Kyiv. But it is an undeniable fact that Kyiv resorts to various tricks to obtain money from the West."

When asked about Japan’s military budget increase, Peskov emphasized that any rise in defense spending in the Asia-Pacific should be approached cautiously to avoid escalating regional tensions. He said:
"I cannot give you an exact figure; I simply do not know how much they had last year or how significant this increase is. But undoubtedly, any increase in military expenditure in the region should be carried out with extreme caution to prevent further escalation of tensions."

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