Russian President Vladimir Putin met with U.S. special envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Moscow on Thursday, reiterating the Kremlin's opposition to the deployment of foreign troops in Ukraine, Reuters reports.
The meeting included a briefing by the U.S. delegation to Putin on the trilateral Russia-U.S.-Ukraine talks that had concluded Wednesday in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates.
During the meeting, Putin said the presence of any foreign troops on Ukrainian territory would be absolutely unacceptable to Russia, as it would threaten Russia's national security. He warned that such troops would be considered legitimate targets of Russian forces.
"From the very beginning, Russia has made it clear that the presence of any foreign troops on Ukrainian territory is absolutely unacceptable to Russia, as it would threaten Russia's security. The Europeans know this, but what are we hearing now? They are saying that as soon as a peace agreement is reached, they will immediately send troops to Ukraine. What does this mean? As we have said before, as far as we are concerned, these troops will become legitimate targets. In other words, the war will resume immediately," Putin said.
Russia and Ukraine have made positive progress on humanitarian issues, and he proposed carrying out a humanitarian aid operation in the city of Konstantinovka in the Donetsk region, Putin said.
Putin said it was important to hear Witkoff's assessment of the trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi and the prospects for further Russia-Ukraine negotiations, particularly from a European perspective, given Witkoff's contacts with European representatives.
The Russian side has never opposed dialogue with Europe, nor has it ever suspended such dialogue, Putin said, adding that it was Europe that suspended dialogue with Russia. He also expressed hope for a permanent peace between Russia and Ukraine.
Witkoff said that the trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi were very positive, and expressed the hope that the meeting with Putin would pave the way for a new round of multilateral talks involving European representatives.
Kushner said he hoped the meeting would provide an opportunity to explore possible ways to end the conflict in Ukraine. He added that European representatives had expressed a willingness to participate in negotiations and help bring about a lasting peace.
During the two-day round of trilateral talks involving Russia, the United States and Ukraine in Abu Dhabi, the parties reached an agreement on a large-scale exchange of prisoners of war but remained deeply divided over key issues, including ending the conflict, territorial disputes, security guarantees for Ukraine and Europe's future security architecture.
