The head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine called Russiaʼs statements about “readiness” for peace talks a smokescreen

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, emphasized that statements by the Russian side about readiness for peace negotiations with Ukraine are a "smoke screen".

According to him, Russia is still "focused on the war."

"There is nothing more cynical than the fact that Putinʼs henchmen say that Russia is ready for peace talks. We hear and see this "readiness" every day: artillery strikes, rocket terror against the civilian population, mass atrocities. Russia remains focused on the war, everything else is just a smokescreen," Kuleba said.

• Earlier, in an interview with the German television channel N-tv, the ex-chancellor of Germany Gerhard Schröder said that, while on "vacation" in Moscow, he met with Putin and learned that "the Kremlin wants to reach a negotiated solution" to the war in Ukraine. He also spoke of the possibility of "expanding the grain agreement" before the ceasefire.
• Mykhailo Podolyak, adviser to the head of the Presidentʼs Office, commented on this with the words: "With one hand, Russia is raising the level of terror with new barbaric crimes, and with the other, it is inviting surrender."