Russia Open to Talks With Ukraine but Needs More Details

The Kremlin signaled Thursday it was open to negotiations with Ukraine on ending the conflict while Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy remains in power despite publicly doubting his legitimacy to rule.

"Russia is generally open to a negotiation process, but first we have to understand how ready the Ukrainian side is for this and how much the Ukrainian side has permission for this from its handlers," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters when asked Thursday whether Russia would be ready to hold talks with Ukraine while Zelenskyy was in power.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said Wednesday during a visit to China that Kyiv was prepared for talks with Russia provided Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity were fully respected, though he said Ukraine has seen no sign of that.

The Kremlin, while signaling its readiness for talks on its own terms, has publicly called into question Zelenskyy's mandate to rule, pointing out that his five-year term in office expired in May and he should have called an election.

Zelenskyy and the West say it is necessary to suspend normal political rules at a time of war and that the Kremlin, given Russia's own tightly controlled political system, is in no position to criticize.

Moscow depicts Zelenskyy as a U.S. puppet, a characterization he rejects.

"Because so far you see very different statements being made, and it is not quite clear yet," Peskov said. "Besides, in addition to the problem with Zelenskyy's legitimacy, there is also a problem with a (Ukrainian) legal ban on having any contacts and negotiations with the Russian side. Therefore, there is still a lot to be clarified and clarifications to be heard."

Pressed during a conference call if the Kremlin could envisage negotiating with Zelenskyy or categorically ruled out such a possibility, Peskov said:

"The question is not an easy one. From a legal point of view this problem (of his legitimacy) is on the agenda, but from a practical point of view we are open to achieving our goals through negotiations. Therefore, different options are possible here."

Reuters reported in May that Putin was ready to halt the war in Ukraine with a negotiated cease-fire but the Kremlin chief was prepared to fight on if Kyiv and the West did not respond.

Putin in June said Russia would end the war in Ukraine, something he calls a special military operation, only if Kyiv agreed to drop its NATO ambitions and hand over the entirety of four provinces claimed by Moscow, demands Kyiv swiftly rejected as tantamount to surrender.