Despite Trump’s push, is there no planned meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy?
Despite the US efforts to arrange the high-profile summit, Russia has confirmed that there is no direct plan between President Vladimir Putin and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The arrangement began for a few days after U.S. President Donald Trump claimed he had sat down for the two leaders.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told foreign media that there is “no plan” between Russian and Ukrainian leaders.
Trump announced on social media earlier this week that he had spoken with Putin in person and was promoting a summit at a yet-to-be-determined location, adding that he intends to attend the trilateral visit meeting after the discussion.
Meanwhile, questions about Moscow’s commitment to the U.S.-led peace initiative has increased as Russian officials object to key elements of the proposed plan.
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Conditions for peaceful negotiations?
Lavrov said Thursday that Putin was ready to meet with Zelenskyy to discuss the peace clause, but only after senior officials first resolved key issues. This could involve a protracted negotiation process as both sides remain far away.
Ukraine hopes that Western security will prevent any post-war Russian attacks, with U.S. and European officials scrambling to make detailed suggestions on how to function. But Lavrov said earlier this week that it would be meaningless to make security arrangements for Ukraine without Moscow’s participation.
On Thursday, Russia’s major drone and missile strikes hit U.S.-owned electronics factories despite Trump’s criticism of Putin’s peaceful striking peacetime criticism of Putin’s continued bombing of Ukrainian targets.
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EU warns Putin of “trap” offer
The EU’s foreign policy chief said on Friday that the possibility of Ukraine ceding land to Russia is part of a peace deal that ended the Three Years’ War, a “trap” set by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Kaja Kallas said the Russian leader demanded concessions from Ukraine in exchange for a halt to the invasion of the army, but granting him the demands would be attributed to the countries that began the battle.
Karas says
In an interview, Karas said the recent talk about handing the Putin franchise was “the trap Russia wants us to enter.”
“I mean, the discussion about what Ukraine should give up, the concessions Ukraine is willing to (make) and we forget that Russia has not made a concession, and they are the invaders here, they are the people who brutally attack another country and kill people,” she said.
“Russia is just shuffling. It’s obvious that Russia doesn’t want peace,” Karas said. “President Trump has repeatedly said that the killing must stop, and Putin is just laughing, not stopping the killing, but adding to the killing.”
Ukraine strikes Russian oil foundation
Meanwhile, Ukraine’s infrastructure aimed at long-range weapons supports Moscow’s war efforts. It hits the refinery and among other targets, Russian wholesale gasoline prices have reached record high prices in recent days.
Ukrainian troops attacked the Unecha oil pump station in the Bryansk region on Friday against Russia’s Druzba oil pipeline.
Druzhba pipeline attack attracts energy attention
Druzba’s pipeline began in Russia and brought oil to Slovakia and Hungary through Belarus and Ukraine. In Russia, part of it travels through the Bryansk region and the Unecha region.
Bryansk region governor Alexander Bogomaz said in a telegram post that Ukraine fired his rockets and drones in the area in an attack.
The pipeline provides Hungary with more than half of the crude oil. Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó wrote on Facebook on Friday that the Druzba pipeline had “a third attack in a short period of time.”
“This is another attack on our energy security. Another attempt to drag us into war,” the minister wrote. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán led the aggressive stance of Kiev and its EU supporters, and most EU countries provided political, financial and military support for Kiev.
(Input from AP)
