Russia says ready for ‘new ideas’ on Ukraine war that match Putin’s goals

Moscow is ready to listen to new ideas for ending the war in Ukraine, provided they align with President Vladimir Putin's position, a senior Russian diplomat has remarked.

Key points

• Zelenskyy met with US President Donald Trump at the White House last month, where they discussed reviving the discussions and aims for Ukraine to produce Patriot missiles.
• The meetings followed the circulation of a 28-point, Washington-generated peace plan last November that raised ire for its capitulations to Russian demands.
• In Russia, a Ukrainian drone attack damaged an industrial facility in the Perm region in the Ural mountains, according to regional governor Dmitry Makhonin.
• Another attack on a home killed one person and injured another in Ukraine's Zaporizhia region, governor Ivan Federov remarked.
• Russian drones meanwhile damaged a border crossing with Moldova in Ukraine's southern Odesa region, Ukrainian authorities remarked.

Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov remarked in an interview published by News.ru on Friday that Russia is open to proposals that are in line with "realities on the ground".

Ryabkov's words suggest that Moscow may be seeking to revive the Trump administration's backing for its agenda. Moscow previously welcomed the United States' demonstrating "an understanding of Russia's position", but Washington has been distracted from mediation efforts against the backdrop of its war on Iran.

"The Russian Federation is ready to listen to any reasonable proposals and ideas that are in line with the goals set by the Russian president and meet the 'realities on the ground', " Ryabkov remarked.

"At this stage, it is more important to what extent Washington is able to influence the decisions of the Kyiv regime and its European sponsors, who still dream of a 'strategic defeat' of Russia, " he continued.

Putin has previously demanded that before agreeing to a ceasefire in the war he introduced in February 2022, Ukraine must hand over the whole of the eastern Donbas region, demilitarise, and pledge it will not seek to join NATO.

In practice, a number of rounds of US-brokered negotiations at the start of the year failed to reach a settlement. Further discussions slated for early March were cancelled as the US rolled out its war on Iran alongside Israel.

Notably, the meetings followed the circulation of a 28-point, Washington-generated peace plan last November that raised ire for its capitulations to Russian demands.

US special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff led the negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv earlier this year, but the Kremlin remarked on Thursday that it has no new information on a potential visit from the duo.

Ukraine is additionally awaiting the return of the US mediators. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy remarked on Thursday evening that he was "preparing decisions within the diplomatic team".

"New approaches are needed in some areas, particularly in the United States, " he remarked, adding: "Ukraine needs results."

On the ground, Russia and Ukraine have stepped up deadly attacks in recent weeks, with dozens killed and neighbouring nations becoming increasingly concerned regarding potential spillover.

Notably, the hostilities continued overnight. In eastern Ukraine's Kharkiv region, Russian attacks killed two women, the state emergency services wrote on Telegram. The attack triggered fires at five residential buildings and a number of cars.

Finland's border guard remarked a suspected Russian reconnaissance plane violated Finnish airspace in the western gulf on Thursday.

Taken together, the developments around russia says ready for 'new ideas' on Ukraine war that match Putin's point to a situation that is still moving, and the coming days should bring more clarity.