Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared that Russia is “ready” for war should Europe seek one, accusing European governments of attempting to undermine progress on a potential Ukraine settlement ahead of his meeting with US representatives.
“We are not planning to go to war with Europe, but if Europe wants to and starts, we are ready right now,” Mr Putin said before talks with US envoy Steve Witkoff and US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, reports RTE.
Mr Putin claimed that European states were issuing terms for a prospective peace deal for Ukraine that Moscow deems entirely unacceptable.
He warned that Russia would increase attacks on Ukrainian infrastructure and vessels, and would target tankers belonging to nations that assist Ukraine, reports RTE.
Mr Trump has pledged to end Europe’s most lethal conflict since World War II, but his initiatives so far — including a summit with Mr Putin in Alaska in August and discussions with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky — have yet to produce a breakthrough.
A leaked collection of 28 draft US peace proposals surfaced last week, prompting alarm among Ukrainian and European officials who said it conceded too much to Russia on NATO, territorial control and limits on Ukraine’s military, reports RTE.
In response, European nations issued their own peace counter-offer, and during talks in Geneva, the United States and Ukraine announced they had developed an “updated and refined peace framework” intended to bring the conflict to an end.
Mr Putin, who sent Russian troops into Ukraine nearly four years ago, has said that the current discussions are not about a formal draft treaty but about a set of proposals that he stated last week “could be the basis for future agreements”, reports RTE.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Mr Witkoff’s meeting with Mr Putin would occur later in the day but declined to specify Russia’s “red lines”, insisting that public declarations were unhelpful.
A White House official confirmed that Mr Kushner would accompany Mr Witkoff on the trip to Russia. A Bombardier Global 7500 aircraft previously used by Mr Witkoff entered Russian airspace, and the Interfax news agency later reported its arrival in Moscow after departing from Miami, reports RTE.
Mr Putin has said he is willing to pursue peace talks, but warned that if Ukraine rejects a settlement, Russian forces will push forward and seize additional Ukrainian territory.
Russia’s invasion in February 2022 involved tens of thousands of troops. Fighting had already begun in eastern Ukraine in 2014 after a pro-Russian president was ousted in the Maidan Revolution and Russia annexed Crimea, with separatist fighters supported by Moscow battling Ukrainian forces, reports RTE.
Russian forces now hold over 19% of Ukrainian territory — around 115,600 sq.km — a rise of one percentage point from two years ago, and have advanced in 2025 at their quickest rate since 2022, according to pro-Ukrainian maps, though Ukraine says the gains have cost Russia significant losses.
In video released ahead of Mr Witkoff’s visit, Mr Putin praised what Russian commanders described as the capture of the eastern Ukrainian city of Pokrovsk, calling it a major win following a long campaign, reports RTE.
Ukrainian troops were still defending the northern sector of the city and had launched attacks against Russian units in southern Pokrovsk, according to Ukraine’s military.
US officials estimate that more than 1.2 million soldiers have been killed or injured since the war began, though neither Russia nor Ukraine publicly releases casualty figures. The conflict has also devastated Ukrainian towns and cities and driven large numbers of people from their homes, reports RTE.
Since the US draft proposals were leaked late last month, European governments have sought to reinforce Ukraine against what they fear would be an overly Russia-friendly peace agreement that might open the door to US investment in Russian energy and minerals and restore Moscow to the G8.
Russia’s core demands include a guarantee that Ukraine will never join NATO, limits on Ukraine’s military, full Russian control over Donbas, recognition of Russian authority over Crimea, Donbas, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson, and protections for Russian speakers and Russian Orthodox believers in Ukraine, reports RTE.
Ukraine argues these conditions amount to surrender and would leave the country vulnerable to future Russian domination, though the United States has proposed a 10-year security guarantee as part of talks.
Mr Witkoff, Mr Kushner and Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Rustem Umerov, head of Ukraine’s national security council, for discussions on Sunday at Mr Witkoff’s Shell Bay club near Miami, reports RTE.
“We share the view that the war must be brought to a fair end,” President Zelensky said on X following talks in Paris. He reiterated yesterday that Russia must not be rewarded for launching the conflict.
Ukraine and European countries portray the war as a colonial-style land seizure by Russia, repeatedly warning that if Moscow prevails, it may in time strike NATO members as well, reports RTE.
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