On Tuesday (January 28, 2025), Russian President Vladimir Putin stated that Russia might be open to peace talks with Ukraine, but made it clear that he would not engage directly with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whom he described as "illegitimate."

In response, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Mr. Putin of being "afraid" of negotiations and using "cynical tricks" to extend the nearly three-year conflict.

U.S. President Donald Trump, since taking office on January 20, has urged both sides to end the fighting. He has threatened harsher sanctions on Russia while asserting that President Zelenskyy is open to negotiating a "deal."

Mr. Putin stated, "If Zelenskyy wants to participate in the negotiations, I will allocate people to take part," but continued to label the Ukrainian leader as "illegitimate" due to the expiration of his presidential term during martial law.

He added, "If there is a desire to negotiate and find a compromise, anyone can lead the negotiations. Naturally, we will aim for what benefits us and aligns with our interests."

Mr. Zelenskyy stated that there was an opportunity to achieve "real peace," but accused the Kremlin leader of hindering efforts to end the conflict.

"Today, Putin once again confirmed that he is afraid of negotiations, afraid of strong leaders, and does everything possible to prolong the war," Mr. Zelenskyy wrote on X.

Kyiv has expressed concerns about being excluded from any peace talks between Russia and the U.S., accusing Putin of attempting to "manipulate" Trump.

Everything would be over

Mr. Putin also asserted that the fighting would end within two months or less if the West stopped supporting Kyiv.

"They will not survive for a month if the money and, in a broader sense, the bullets run out. Everything would be over in a month and a half or two," Mr. Putin said in remarks to a State TV reporter.

Despite Mr. Trump's pledge to implement a swift ceasefire once in office, the conflict shows no signs of de-escalating.

Russia claimed on Wednesday that it had shot down over 100 Ukrainian drones in an overnight attack, while Kyiv's military reported that Moscow had launched its own overnight drone strike.

On Tuesday, Russia's army announced that its forces had captured the village of Dvorichna in Ukraine's northeastern Kharkiv region, marking another territorial gain for Moscow's advancing troops.

The Russian Defence Ministry stated that its forces had "liberated" the village, which had a pre-conflict population of over 3,000.

The village of Dvorichna, located across the strategically important Oskil River, was initially seized by Moscow at the start of its full-scale military offensive in 2022. It was later retaken by Kyiv in a rapid counter-offensive.

Ukrainian military bloggers with ties to the defense ministry also reported that Russian forces were advancing on the flanks of Chasiv Yar, a key hilltop town that had a pre-conflict population of around 12,000.

Over the past year, Ukraine’s army has been pushed back, outgunned and outmanned by Russian forces along the 1,000-kilometre (600-mile) front line.

In a related development, Ukraine’s government dismissed a deputy Defence Minister on Tuesday after the defense minister accused him of failing to ensure the "timely supply of ammunition" to soldiers.

Putin says Ukraine conflict could have been avoided had Trump been in office

The Russian President stated, "I couldn’t disagree with him that if he had been President, if they hadn’t stolen victory from him in 2020, the crisis that emerged in Ukraine in 2022 could have been avoided," echoing the U.S. President's claim.

On Friday (January 24, 2025), Russian President Vladimir Putin reiterated U.S. President Donald Trump's claim that the conflict in Ukraine could have been avoided if Trump had been in the White House in 2022. Putin also stated that Moscow is open to talks with the U.S. on a wide range of issues.

Mr. Putin’s statement marked his bluntest endorsement yet of Mr. Trump’s refusal to accept his defeat in the 2020 election.

Mr. Trump has repeatedly claimed that the conflict would not have started if he had been in office, despite his presidency coinciding with the intensification of fighting in eastern Ukraine between Kyiv’s forces and separatists backed by Moscow, before Mr. Putin deployed tens of thousands of troops in 2022.

On Thursday (January 23, 2025), Mr. Trump told Fox News that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy should have struck a deal with Mr. Putin to prevent the conflict.

References

• Afp. (2025, January 29). Putin says talks with Ukraine possible, but not with Zelenskyy. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/putin-says-talks-with-ukraine-possible-but-not-with-zelenskyy/article69153749.ece
• Ap. (2025, January 25). Russian President Putin says Ukraine conflict could have been avoided had Trump been in office. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/putin-says-ukraine-conflict-could-have-been-avoided-had-trump-been-in-office/article69137748.ece
• Johny, S. (2024, March 18). Vladimir Putin | Reign of the patriarch. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/vladimir-putin-reign-of-the-patriarch/article67963647.ece
• Sampath, G. (2022, February 6). Volodymyr Zelensky | The comedian-turned-President. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/volodymyr-zelensky-the-comedian-turned-president/article38384687.ece
• Ap. (2025, January 24). Invest in U.S. or face tariffs: Donald Trump to global elites in Davos. The Hindu. https://www.thehindu.com/news/international/invest-in-us-or-face-tariffs-donald-trump-to-global-elites-in-davos/article69133451.ece