In his first public comments on Kyiv’s ceasefire proposal, Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked world leaders, including Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, US President Donald Trump, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, for their efforts in addressing the Ukraine-Russia war, according to news agency ANI.
Vladimir Putin stated that while Russia supports the plans to end hostilities, it “proceeds from the assumption that this cessation should lead to long-term peace and eliminate the root causes of the crisis” during a joint news conference with Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday.
“I will tell you how I view it, of course,” Putin said in response to a question on Ukraine’s preparedness for a ceasefire, as reported by ANI. However, I want to begin by expressing my gratitude to President Trump for giving the Ukraine deal such careful consideration. Each of us has enough domestic issues to deal with. However, several state leaders are tackling this issue and devoting a significant amount of their time to it, including the president of the People’s Republic of China, the prime minister of India, the presidents of Brazil and South Africa. Since the goal of this activity is to accomplish a noble goal—the goal of putting an end to hostilities and fatalities—we are thankful to every one of them for that.
Putin continued, “We agree with the proposals to cease hostilities but proceed from the assumption that this cessation should lead to long-term peace and eliminate the root causes of this crisis.”
He also brought up the recent US-Ukraine talks in Saudi Arabia, implying that American pressure was probably a factor in Ukraine’s readiness to agree to a ceasefire.
“Next up is Ukraine’s willingness to end the conflict. On the surface, it appears that the Ukrainian side made this choice in response to pressure from the United States during the US-Ukraine meeting in Saudi Arabia. Since the situation on the ground is changing, as was just described here, I firmly believe that the Ukrainian side should have contacted the Americans for this decision,” Putin stated.
Ukraine stated its willingness to accept the United States’ proposal on March 11 to impose an “immediate, interim 30-day ceasefire,” which is contingent upon Russia’s approval and concurrent implementation and can be prolonged by mutual consent.
Following the peace negotiations in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, US President Donald Trump praised Ukraine’s consent to the ceasefire and reiterated his hope that Russia would follow suit. Trump stated that a ceasefire is “very important” and that both Russian and Ukrainian soldiers are losing their lives in this “horrible war.”
Donald Trump’s efforts were praised by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
PM Narendra Modi reaffirmed India’s stance that the Russia-Ukraine crisis should be settled through negotiations earlier in February and praised Donald Trump’s efforts to do so.
Additionally, he reaffirmed that India stands on the side of peace and not neutral in the war. In addition to pointing to his statement that “this is not an era of war” while speaking with Russian President Putin, the prime minister emphasized that he has personally met with the leaders of both Russia and Ukraine.
“I have maintained constant communication with Ukraine and Russia. The leaders of both nations have met with me. In a joint press conference at the White House, Modi stated, “I want to reiterate that India is not neutral; we are on a side, and that is peace.” Many people have the notion that India is neutral.
He also reaffirmed India’s stance that the war cannot be resolved on the battlefield and praised President Donald Trump’s initiatives in this regard.
Modi visited Russia in July of last year to take part in the 22nd India-Russia Bilateral Summit. In August of last year, he also visited Ukraine.
Modi emphasized India’s stance in favor of a diplomatic and dialogue-based peaceful settlement of the crisis at the bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.