Putin signals readiness for renewed Ukraine talks next month, Kremlin aide says

Moscow, Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin indicated on Wednesday that Russia was prepared in principle to restart negotiations with Ukraine and the US next month to end the Ukraine conflict, according to Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov. Putin conveyed that position to US special envoy Steve Witkoff, Ushakov said.

Security arrangements proposed as focus

Ushakov said no negotiations in that format had been held since February. He said the next round should concentrate on “building a security system for Russia and Ukraine after the end of the conflict.”

According to Ushakov, Witkoff updated Putin on discussions he had held a day earlier in Oslo with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Norway’s prime minister and Finland’s president.

Ushakov said Witkoff had identified fresh elements in the positions of European countries and Kyiv, but that these offered little useful material for resolving the Ukraine crisis.

Diesel agreement and Iran also discussed

The meeting between Putin and Witkoff ran for nearly three hours, Ushakov said. Their discussions included implementation of the agreement Putin reached with US President Donald Trump on October 9 concerning Russian diesel supplies for the US and global markets.

Ushakov said they also addressed the crisis involving Iran. Putin stressed that diplomatic options remained available and that reaching agreements with Tehran, which he described as Russia’s strategic partner, was both achievable and necessary.

Russia also reiterated its willingness to help find political and diplomatic ways to resolve the Iranian issue, Ushakov said.