Putin rejects Zelensky meeting, vows to pursue Russia’s war goals

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday ruled out meeting his Ukrainian counterpart any time soon a day after Volodymyr Zelensky called for a sitdown between the leaders to end the fouryear warSpeaking at an economic forum in his home city of Saint Petersburg Putin said he saw no point in meeting Zelensky until a possible peace deal had been agreed Zelensky hit back saying the Russian leader was weak and choosing war againPutin also vowed to press on with Russias military offensive until its war goals had been achievedRussia has demanded control of Ukraines eastern Donbas region as well as sweeping political and military restrictions on its neighbourKyiv and its allies have ruled the conditions as tantamount to capitulation and USbrokered peace talks have failed to bring the sides closerZelensky on Thursday issued a rare direct appeal to the Russian leaderUkraine proposes ending this war through direct engagement between us and you I am proposing a meeting Zelensky said in an open letter I propose to set a clear date for such a meetingPutin refused howeverI see no point in meeting It only makes sense for the Ukrainian side to stop the advance of our armed forces Thats it And we need agreements Putin told Russias flagship economic forumLet the experts work develop some solutions and then we can meet Putin addedHundreds of thousands have been killed since Putin launched his fullscale offensive which he calls a special military operation in February 2022Swathes of eastern and southern Ukraine have been destroyed and millions forced from their homes in the fouryear campaign Moscow hoped would have toppled Kyiv within a matter of daysRussia staged new deadly attacks Friday with Ukrainian authorities saying four civilians were killed and seven wounded in Russian strikes on Mykolaivka and Druzhkivka in the Donetsk regionSome dayZelensky says a summit is needed to thrash out the key issues of a peace dealUnfortunately the Russian side is choosing war again everyone heard todays response A weak response He simply doesnt want to end the war he said after Putin rejected the callHis proposal had won support from key allies including US President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel MacronZelensky is to meet Macron Britains Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Germanys Chancellor Friedrich Merz in London on Sunday in a bid to inject fresh momentum into diplomatic effortsPutin said the conflict would only stop when Russias goals are metMilitary actions will end some day we assume Without a doubt they will end once we have achieved the goals we have set for ourselves Putin told the audience of business leaders and visiting dignitaries from Russias alliesThe exKGB spy also rejected claims that the Russian economy was falling apart under the high costs of the warThe Kremlins offensive has put Russias finances under immense strain with rising prices tax hikes and twodecadehigh borrowing costs hitting many citizens hardWe of course hear criticism from all sides that everything has collapsed Putin saidWe have descended to the same level at which eurozone countries have been living through for the past few years the Russian leader said adding that Russia was pursuing a sovereign economyAsked by AFP about Russias economic woes Putin had on Thursday channelled the US writer Mark TwainRumours of my death have been greatly exaggerated he said rejecting the idea that Russia was on the brink of a fullblown crisisRussian DavosPutin spoke just two days after the opening of SPIEF once dubbed the Russian Davos was overshadowed by brazen Ukrainian drone strikes on Saint PetersburgKyiv has intensified its attacks on Russias vital energy infrastructure oil depots refineries exporting hubs which are threatening to dent Moscows most important income streamIn the early years of Putins rule Western investors keen to make a buck in Russias chaotic and fastgrowing economy would gather at the SPIEF to strike deals and hobnob with the Russian eliteNow drones and machine guns are out on displayAFP reporters saw Russianmade humanoid robots walking the venue halls where stands promoting investment into regions annexed from Ukraine were prominentThe guests included former Hollywood star turned Putinbacker Steven Seagal American conspiracy theorist Candace Owens Trumps ballroom commissioner and MPs from the farright Alternative for Germany partyThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever