Russia said on Monday that Ukraine must decide whether to participate in discussions on a memorandum on a future peace agreement that Moscow has already discussed with the United States, Reuters reported, BTA reported.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said after his conversation with US President Donald Trump on Wednesday that Moscow was ready to work with Ukraine on drafting a memorandum on a future peace agreement and that efforts to end the war in Ukraine were moving in the right direction.
Discussions on the memorandum will include the principles of the agreement, as well as a timeframe and definition of the corresponding peace agreement, Putin said.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters that she hoped Ukraine had taken a constructive position on possible negotiations on the memorandum in order to "self-preservation".
"Now the ball is in Kiev"s court," Zakharova said, stressing that this was a very important moment. She said that after Putin proposed direct peace talks with Ukraine, Kiev's EU allies tried to prevent the talks from continuing, but failed.
Regarding the recently announced new EU sanctions against Russia, Zakharova said that Russia would never accept ultimatums from anyone, adding that it was clear that Europe wanted to rearm Ukraine and continue the war.
Putin sent thousands of troops to Ukraine in 2022 - a war that has sparked the sharpest confrontation between Moscow and the West since the Cold War, Reuters notes.