Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his country’s willingness to engage in a third round of negotiations with Ukraine, while also acknowledging fundamental disagreements between the two sides.
Speaking after the Eurasian Economic Union summit in Minsk, Belarus, Putin characterized the Russian and Ukrainian memorandums on ending the war as “absolutely opposite” and suggested this divergence was expected, arguing that negotiations exist specifically to find common ground between conflicting positions.
The Russian president declined to elaborate on specific details of the proposed talks.
“I wouldn’t want to go into details, because I consider it inappropriate, even harmful to preempt the negotiations themselves,” Putin stated.
According to Putin, recent prisoner exchanges and the return of deceased soldiers’ remains have established a foundation for continued diplomatic contact. He indicated both sides had previously agreed to proceed with a third negotiating round following the completion of these humanitarian measures.
The initial 16 May talks resulted in a large-scale 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner exchange conducted in three stages from 23 May to 25 May.
Following the 2 June talks, both sides agreed to further phased exchanges focusing on seriously ill and wounded POWs, as well as prisoners aged 18 to 25. The latest confirmed swap happened on 26-27 June, which involved many soldiers held since 2022.
Earlier, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan also revealed that US President Donald Trump has expressed willingness to participate in potential Ukraine-Russia leadership meetings, contingent on Putin’s attendance.
