Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow is ready for a new round of negotiations to settle the conflict in Ukraine. The head of Russia's foreign policy ministry made the statement while speaking at a roundtable on the situation around Ukraine, according to infohub.kz.
"We explained that we have never refused talks. And all the negotiations that took place were interrupted not on our initiative. So if our colleagues are ready, I think it is quite possible to resume them. We have something to say," the minister was quoted as saying.
Lavrov stressed that since the start of the conflict the Russian side has never changed its position. "Within this position we are ready to seek reasonable compromises, but in principle we have not changed the task of ensuring our security, preventing NATO from appearing on our borders and ensuring the legitimate rights of Russians and Russian-speaking people who have lived on these lands for centuries," the Russian foreign minister said.
According to presidential aide Yuri Ushakov, Russia considers Abu Dhabi a priority venue for a possible resumption of negotiations on settling the Ukrainian conflict.
Earlier, Donald Trump's special envoys — Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner — visited Moscow and held talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin. They then met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. After that, the U.S. president raised the possibility of a trilateral meeting with Zelensky and Putin.
And the day before, the American leader said that Ukraine and Russia had agreed not to attack each other's energy facilities.