Kremlin says West and Kyiv rejecting dialogue on Ukraine war

The Kremlin claims Ukraine and Western nations are rejecting all proposals for dialogue to resolve the war, as Russia and Ukraine held peace talks in Türkiye.

The Kremlin has accused Ukraine and its Western allies of refusing all efforts at dialogue to resolve the conflict in Ukraine, which is now in its fourth year.

Speaking to Russia’s state-run Tass news agency, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that prospects for future relations between Moscow and Kyiv were "too theoretical a question right now", suggesting such discussions were premature while the conflict was ongoing.

“First, we need to settle the problem, and we need to record the fulfillment of the tasks that the special military operation faced,” Peskov stated, using the Kremlin’s preferred term for the war in Ukraine.

He added that while Russia would prefer to achieve its aims through diplomatic means, “all proposals for dialogue have been rejected, both by Ukraine itself and by Westerners.” Peskov claimed that this left Moscow with limited options for resolving the conflict through peaceful channels.

Ukrainian officials have not responded to Peskov’s comments. However, Kyiv has consistently accused Moscow of using negotiations as a tactic to stall, while avoiding meaningful progress. Russia has denied such accusations.

The remarks follow a third round of renewed peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul on Wednesday. Although no major breakthroughs were announced, both sides agreed to a new prisoner exchange involving at least 1,200 individuals from each side.

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