Wednesday, June 4, 2025 - Russia has downplayed hopes of any swift resolution in the ongoing Ukraine conflict, calling the negotiations "complex" and cautioning against expecting immediate progress.
“It would be wrong to expect
immediate solutions and breakthroughs,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told
reporters on Tuesday, a day after Moscow rejected Kyiv’s call for an
unconditional ceasefire during talks in Istanbul.
The latest round of discussions lasted less than two hours
and led to a large-scale prisoner swap agreement. Both sides also exchanged
their respective peace proposals, referred to as "memorandums."
Now entering its fourth year, the war has caused tens of
thousands of deaths on both sides and displaced millions in eastern Ukraine.
Despite occasional diplomatic engagements, the two parties remain far apart on
core issues.
According to Russian state media, Moscow has demanded that
Ukraine withdraw troops from four regions in the east and south that Russia
claims to have annexed—a precondition for pausing its offensive. Instead of the
full ceasefire Kyiv requested, Russia offered a limited truce lasting two to
three days in certain frontline areas.
Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha dismissed the
Russian proposals, accusing Moscow of recycling “old ultimatums” and avoiding
any “meaningful formats for a ceasefire.”
Peskov also ruled out the possibility of a summit involving
the presidents of Russia, Ukraine, and the United States anytime soon. “In the
near future, it is unlikely,” he said, adding that such a meeting would only be
possible after negotiators reach an agreement.
The White House had earlier said that U.S. President Donald
Trump was “open” to such a summit—an idea also supported by Ukrainian President
Volodymyr Zelensky and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Meanwhile, tensions escalated on the battlefield. Zelensky
accused Russia of deliberately targeting civilians in a missile strike on the
city of Sumy, near the Russian border, which killed four people. “This attack
says everything one needs to know about Russia’s so-called ‘desire’ to end this
war,” Zelensky said, urging the U.S. and Europe to take stronger action.
Among the 20 injured in the Sumy strike was a seven-year-old
girl, who remains in critical condition, according to local authorities. Three
more people were killed in a separate attack in the Kharkiv region.
Russia's military claimed it had captured the village of
Andriivka in the Sumy region, roughly five kilometers from the border. Zelensky
recently warned that Moscow is preparing for a major offensive there, with
around 50,000 Russian troops massed in the area.
Ukraine’s SBU security service also claimed responsibility
for a strike on a support pillar of the Crimean Bridge, which connects the
annexed peninsula to mainland Russia, using an underwater explosive device. The
extent of the damage remains unclear following a temporary closure of the
bridge.
In Washington, a delegation of top Ukrainian officials
arrived for high-level talks with U.S. counterparts focused on defense,
economic assistance, and potential new sanctions on Russia.
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