MOSCOW, Dec 29 (Reuters) – President Vladimir Putin told U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday that Russia would review its position in peace negotiations after what Moscow said was a Ukrainian drone attack on a Russian presidential residence, the Kremlin said.
Ukraine has dismissed Russia’s accusation that 91 drones attacked Putin’s residence in northern Russia as a lie, and has accused Moscow – which has not yet presented evidence to back its assertions – of attempting to undermine peace talks.
Yuri Ushakov, Kremlin foreign policy aide, said that Putin and Trump had spoken on Monday and that Putin had been briefed by Trump and his senior advisers about Washington’s negotiations with Ukraine.
“According to the Americans, during these negotiations the American side aggressively pursued the idea of the need for Kyiv to take real steps towards a final settlement of the conflict, not to hide behind demands for a temporary ceasefire,” Ushakov told reporters on a conference call.
Ushakov said that the Russian side feared that the ideas put forward by Ukraine to the Americans could still be interpreted too broadly by Kyiv.
Trump had been shocked when Putin told him that Ukraine had attacked a presidential residence in Novgorod, Ushakov said.
“Russia’s position will be reviewed on a number of agreements reached at the previous stage and on the emerging interchanges,” Ushakov said. “This was stated very clearly.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy earlier said that the claim of a Ukrainian attack on Putin’s residence was “a complete fabrication intended to justify additional attacks against Ukraine, including Kyiv, as well as Russia’s own refusal to take necessary steps to end the war.”
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Guy Faulconbridge and Gleb Stolyarov; Editing by Andrew Osborn)
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