Ukraine Peace Talks To Take U-Turn? Putin Flags Stance Shift In Trump Call After Alleged Drone Attack On Residence

(MENAFN- Live Mint) President Vladimir Putin on Monday informed US President Donald Trump that Russia would reassess its stance in peace talks following what Moscow described as a Ukrainian drone attack on a Russian presidential residence, according to the Kremlin.

Ukraine has rejected Russia's claim that 91 drones targeted Putin's residence in northern Russia, calling it false, and accused Moscow, which has yet to provide evidence, of trying to derail peace talks.

Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov stated that Putin and Trump spoke on Monday, during which Trump and his senior advisers updated Putin on Washington's negotiations with Ukraine.

During a conference call with reporters, as per Reuters, Ushakov said,“According to the Americans, during these negotiations the American side aggressively pursued the idea of the need for Kyiv to take real steps towards a final settlement of the conflict, not to hide behind demands for a temporary ceasefire.”

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Ushakov stated that Russia was concerned that Ukraine's proposals to the United States might still be interpreted too broadly by Kyiv. He added that Trump was taken aback when Putin informed him that Ukraine had attacked a presidential residence in Novgorod.

“Russia's position will be reviewed on a number of agreements reached at the previous stage and on the emerging interchanges. This was stated very clearly,” Ushakov added.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed the claim that Ukraine had attacked Putin's residence, describing it as a complete fabrication aimed at justifying further attacks on Ukraine, including Kyiv, and Russia's refusal to take the necessary measures to end the war.

Trump-Zelensky meet

Trump and Putin's call came on the heels of the US President's meeting with Zelensky at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida.

Both leaders expressed optimism about the prospects of an agreement. That meeting produced no clear breakthrough but saw Trump hail what he called“a lot of progress". Speaking with Zelensky, Trump said he was confident a deal was“getting a lot closer", though it could take a few weeks to finalise and there was no set timeline.

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Zelensky said on Sunday that the peace plan was“90% agreed". Following their meeting, the US and Ukrainian presidents spoke with European leaders. Ukraine is seeking a meeting with European partners and Trump in January, Zelensky noted, to be followed by a separate meeting with Russian officials“in one format or another". French President Emmanuel Macron said in a post on X on Monday that the Coalition of the Willing group will convene in early January to discuss its support for Ukraine.

Ukrainian officials have spent recent weeks revising a 28-point draft plan originally proposed by the US, which was viewed as overly favorable to Russia, according to Bloomberg. The latest version now has 20 points, but Moscow has warned that it contains elements it will not accept, comprising provisions regarding the size of Ukraine's post-war military.

(With inputs from agencies)

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