Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov remarked “we can’t say there has been something promising or any breakthroughs” after the latest round of talks with Ukraine in Istanbul.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan greets members of the Russian and Ukrainian delegations ahead of their talks in Istanbul (AP photo)
The Kremlin says there was no breakthrough in the latest round of talks with Ukraine.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Wednesday it was a “positive factor” that Ukraine submitted its written proposals, but added that “we can’t say there has been something promising or any breakthroughs”.
He emphasised in a call with reporters that there is still a lot of work ahead following Tuesday’s talks in Istanbul.
On Tuesday, Ukraine set out a detailed framework for a peace deal under which the country would remain neutral but its security would be guaranteed by a group of third countries, including the US, Britain, France, Turkey, China and Poland.
It said it would also be willing to hold talks over a 15-year period on the future of the Crimean Peninsula, which was annexed by Russia in 2014.
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Peskov said Russia’s chief delegate in the talks, Vladimir Medinsky, has reported their results to President Vladimir Putin.
The Kremlin spokesman didn’t discuss details of the negotiations. Asked about the Ukrainian offer of talks over the status of Crimea, he said there is nothing to discuss because Crimea is part of Russia under the country’s constitution.