Slovakia Offered To Host Russia-Ukraine Peace Talks – Putin
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday that Slovakia had offered to be a “platform” for possible peace talks between Russia and Ukraine, nearly three years since the launch of Moscow’s offensive.
Putin told a press conference that Slovakia’s Prime Minister Robert Fico “said that if there are any negotiations, they would be happy to provide their country as a platform” and added that Russia was “not against it.”
Fico, one of the few European leaders to maintain ties with the Kremlin, met with the Russian president in Moscow on December 22.
The visit came despite Western efforts to isolate Putin and present a united front in support for Kyiv.
Slovakia, an EU and NATO member, has halted military aid to Ukraine since autumn 2023 under Fico’s government and called for peace talks.
Fico has accused Kyiv of jeopardising his country’s supply of Russian gas, which it depends on.
The prospect of peace talks to end the conflict in Ukraine that began in February 2022 has grown since the re-election of Donald Trump to the White House.
Trump has vowed to push for a quick deal to halt the fighting when he takes office in January.
That has sparked fears in Kyiv and Europe that Ukraine could be pushed to make concessions to Moscow.
Putin has vowed that his country would achieve all its objectives in Ukraine.
He also warned that Moscow was ready to again use its latest-generation Oreshnik missile, first fired in a strike last month, sharply escalating tensions.
Putin has repeatedly threatened to strike “decision-making centres” in Kyiv.
AFP
