MOSCOW (Reuters) -President Vladimir Putin is prepared to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy but all issues need to be worked through first and there’s a question about Zelenskiy’s authority to sign a deal, Putin’s foreign minister said on Thursday.
Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump met on Friday in Alaska for the first Russia-U.S. summit in more than four years and the two leaders discussed how to end the deadliest war in Europe since World War Two.
Following his summit talks in Alaska, Trump said on Monday he had begun arranging a meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders, to be followed by a trilateral summit with Trump.
Asked by reporters if Putin was willing to meet Zelenskiy, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters: “Our president has repeatedly said that he is ready to meet, including with Mr. Zelenskiy.
Lavrov, though, added a caveat: “with the understanding that all issues that require consideration at the highest level will be well worked out, and experts and ministers will prepare appropriate recommendations.
“And, of course, with the understanding that when and if – hopefully, when – it comes to signing future agreements, the issue of the legitimacy of the person who signs these agreements from the Ukrainian side will be resolved,” Lavrov said.
Putin has repeatedly raised doubts about Zelenskiy’s legitimacy as his term in office was due to expire in May 2024 but the war means no new presidential election has yet been held. Kyiv says Zelenskiy remains the legitimate president.
Russian officials say they are worried that if Zelenskiy signs the deal then a future leader of Ukraine could contest it on the basis that Zelenskiy’s term had technically expired.
Lavrov said that the best option for a security guarantee for Ukraine would be based on discussions that took place between Moscow and Kyiv in 2022.
Under a draft of that document which Reuters has seen, Ukraine was asked to agree to permanent neutrality in return for international security guarantees from the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council: Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States.
Any attempts to depart from the failed Istanbul discussions would be hopeless, Lavrov said, accusing European leaders of trying to undermine progress made at the Alaska summit.
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Lucy PapachristouEditing by Andrew Osborn)
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