In a huge development which significantly raises the stakes for any future potential Trump-backed negotiations related to seeking ceasefire in the Ukraine war, President Vladimir Putin has said that he won't negotiate with Ukraine so long as President Volodymyr Zelensky is in power, and on the other side of talks.
"If he wants to take part in negotiations, I will select such people, it's not an issue. The question is about the final signing of the documents," Putin said in a state broadcast TV interview on Tuesday. He argued that because of canceled elections Zelensky's legitimacy has expired, and this means he "does not have the right to sign anything."
Early in the war Zelensky had authorized a decree outlawing peace negotiations with Moscow. This happened in 2022 and there have not been direct engagements since, other than UAE-brokered POW swaps.
It was actually Zelensky who long ago declared that it is Putin who is illegitimate, and that Ukraine won't enter peace negotiations so long as Putin is in power. It appears the Russian leader is now using the same tactic to turn the table, and create additional leverage at a moment Trump is pushing for talks and a final deal.
"On the question of the final signing of the documents...there cannot be a single mistake or wrinkle. Everything must be polished," Putin emphasized.
But Putin in the fresh comments did leave an opening. "If there is a desire, any legal question can be resolved. So far, we simply don't see such a desire" from the Ukrainian side, Putin stressed.
Essentially Putin is saying Zelensky would have to 'move first' to cancel that prior law banning talks with Putin's government. This could by why the Kremlin is slow-playing Trump overtures which are meant to encourage everyone to get to the negotiating table.
Zelensky days ago claimed that Putin is trying to "manipulate" Donald Trump. According to a summary of the latest back-and-forth:
Russian President Vladimir Putin told reporters on Friday: "Regarding negotiations, we have always said—and I want to emphasize this again—that we are ready for talks on the Ukrainian issue."
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his evening address on Friday: "[Putin] wants to manipulate the desire of the President of the United States of America to achieve peace. I am confident that no Russian manipulations will succeed anymore."
Institute for the Study of War said in a Russian offensive campaign assessment on Friday: "Putin is once again attempting to obfuscate his unwillingness to participate in good-faith negotiations to end the war by blaming Ukraine for defending itself against Russia's invasion and illegal annexation of Ukrainian territory."
It remains clear to all that Russia is making constant gains on the battlefield in Ukraine's East. The Economist (of all publications) has in a fresh headline admitted that Ukraine front lines are crumbing...
Putin further explained in the Tuesday interview, "Negotiations factually began immediately after the start of the Special Military Operation. Initially, we told the Ukrainian leadership at the time that the people of the Lugansk and Donetsk People's Republics don't want to be part of Ukraine. Leave these territories, and that's it, that's where it ends. No fighting, no war."
Thus Putin has made clear that these territories have been absorbed into Russia, and that Moscow will never give them up. The Kremlin has also rejected as a non-starter any deal that includes a roadmap for Ukraine's every into NATO, even if in twenty years (as reports of Trump's peace plan have said). Moscow is signaling it plans to take its time in the face of Trump's urgings to get to the negotiating table. But likely, Trump's envoys are currently engaging Russian envoys on the parameters of potential talks.