Russia claims US doing ‘everything it can’ to prolong Ukraine war, says Putin ready for ‘negotiations’
Russia on Wednesday accused the outgoing Joe Biden’s administration in the United States of “doing everything” to prolong the war in Ukraine. It reiterated that President Vladimir Putin is ready to make “contacts and negotiations”.
Kremlin’s comments after Washington said it would send antipersonnel mines to Kyiv. “If you look at the trends of the outgoing US administration, they are fully committed to continuing the war in Ukraine and are doing everything they can to do so,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
The decision to provide Ukraine with antipersonnel land mines to shore up its defences against Russian forces comes after Washington allowed Ukraine to use US-supplied long-range weapons to strike deep inside Russian territory.
The mines to be supplied by the US are called “non-persistent” as they go inert after a set period of time when their battery life runs out. The Biden administration has asked Ukraine to deploy the mines only on its “own territory” and avoid using them in heavily populated areas to avoid damage to civilian lives.
A global anti-landmine group condemned the US decision and termed it “terrible”. The International Campaign to Ban Landmines (ICBL) said Ukraine “must clearly state they cannot and will not accept these weapons” and also said it will work towards persuading the US to reverse its decision.
Putin ready for ‘negotiations’
The Kremlin spokesperson on Wednesday said the option of “freezing” the war did not suit Russia, but reiterated that President Vladimir Putin was open to negotiations.
Earlier, news agency Reuters had reported, citing anonymous Russian officials, that Putin was willing to talk with incoming US President Donald Trump on a ceasefire deal in Ukraine that could roughly “freeze the war” along the current front lines.
Reuters reported that Putin may agree to discuss a carve-up of four regions in Ukraine — Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson — that Russia annexed in 2022, but doesn’t fully control.
Ukraine battles landmines
Ukraine, called the most mined nation in the world, has been seeking global help to clear its territory of mines planted by invading Russian forces since the beginning of the war in February 2022.
Ukraine’s prime minister Denys Shmyhal sought international help to clear landmines and unexploded bombs at a meeting in Switzerland last month. “The scale of this challenge is truly massive. I call on the entire civilised world to increase support for Ukraine in the field of demining,” Shmyhal told a meeting in the city of Lausanne.