Russia is open to dialogue with the Europeans about the war on Ukraine, a spokesman for President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday.
“The Russians are ready for talks,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitri Peskov. “We believe it is always better to talk to each other than to drive the situation into total confrontation – which is precisely what the Europeans are currently doing,” he said.
Russia would welcome a change in tone, Peskov added.
He pointed to recent statements from Finnish President Alexander Stubb and out of Berlin about direct talks with Russia, and said it was “probably not a bad thing” if a negotiator were being sought at EU level.
“Just a few months ago, such discussions were not even taking place in Europe,” Peskov noted.
Putin has always stressed that he was ready for talks if approached. At the same time, Moscow has repeatedly issued statements – including from the Foreign Ministry – saying that Europeans should be considered a party to the war given their arms deliveries to Ukraine, and therefore have no place at the negotiating table.
Search for a suitable mediator
Negotiations to end Russia’s war against Ukraine have of late been conducted under US mediation. A breakthrough in talks between Kiev and Moscow has so far failed to materialize, however.
The main reason is that Russia is holding firm to its demand that Ukraine withdraw its troops from the Donbass region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has rejected such territorial concessions to Putin.
When asked by a Russian journalist which European mediator he would prefer, Putin recently named his friend Gerhard Schröder. Ukraine has rejected the former German chancellor as a mediator, citing his close ties to Russia.
Peskov stressed on Thursday that Putin had not proactively proposed Schröder but had only named him in response to a question.
Putin has also ruled out any mediator who has made disparaging remarks about Russia in the past.
It remains unclear who at the EU level might be suitable for the role.
EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas would be an obvious candidate, but Moscow has accused the Estonian diplomat of hating Russians and ruled out talks with her.