MOSCOW (Reuters) – Russia accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Thursday of wrecking diplomacy aimed at reaching a peace deal after he refused this week to agree to recognise Russia’s annexation of Crimea.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told reporters that it was becoming clearer by the minute that Zelenskiy lacked the capacity to negotiate a deal to end the war.
Zelenskiy said on Tuesday that recognising Crimea as part of Russia would violate Ukraine’s constitution. Ukraine says it is committed to seeking a full and unconditional ceasefire.
After talks with the U.S, Ukraine agreed to a 30-day truce last month but Russian President Vladimir Putin responded with a list of conditions and questions, saying such a pause would give Ukraine the chance to mobilise more soldiers and acquire more weapons.
Zelenskiy and U.S. President Donald Trump clashed again on Wednesday, with Trump chiding the Ukrainian leader for refusing to recognise Russia’s claim to the Crimean peninsula, which it annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
Trump in recent days has said he will walk away from trying to negotiate a settlement in Ukraine if Kyiv and Moscow do not make a deal soon.
Zakharova said decisions by European countries to continue supplying weapons to Kyiv were encouraging Zelenskiy to pursue the war, regardless of casualties.
Their attitude showed some European countries were frightened by the prospect of a Russian victory, Zakharova said.
(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Lucy Papachristou; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
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