A meeting was held in Moscow between Vladimir Putin and two US presidential envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. According to RBC-Ukraine, citing TASS, the main topic of the negotiations was the outcome of the trilateral meeting in Abu Dhabi dedicated to resolving the conflict in Ukraine. It was in this context that the Russian leader spoke about the future presence of foreign military personnel on Ukrainian territory and the format of potential security guarantees in Europe.
Threat in the event of foreign troop deployment
Putin stated that the presence of any foreign troops on Ukrainian territory is "absolutely unacceptable" to Russia because, according to him, it is viewed as a threat to the security of the Russian Federation. He emphasized that this position, as he claimed, had been agreed upon during negotiations in Istanbul in 2022. The Russian leader added that, in his assessment, after achieving peace in Ukraine, European parties intend to introduce troops into Ukrainian territory, which he interpreted as a "continuation of the war."
Dialogue with Europe and security tools
Speaking to the American negotiators, Putin stated that Russia has been in favor of a dialogue with Europe "from the very beginning" and has never interrupted it, and that it supports a "lasting" and "eternal" peace between Russia and Ukraine. According to him, the US administration and Donald Trump himself have proposed that Russia negotiate on security assurance tools for Europe as a whole. At the same time, he expressed dissatisfaction with the fact that, in his phrasing, European countries refuse to discuss these issues until peace is achieved in Ukraine, and he urged the American administration to "work with European allies" so they can decide what they want — peace or war.
Line of demarcation and humanitarian mission
Separately, Putin stated that Russia is against maintaining so-called "gray zones" and that for the Kremlin, there is only one line of demarcation with Ukraine — the state border, after which, according to him, "it will be clear: here you are, here we are." Furthermore, at the same meeting, he spoke about the possibility of organizing a humanitarian mission in Kostiantynivka, modeled after an operation which he said took place in late October in Oleshky, Kherson region.
