Russia's Vladimir Putin promises immediate ceasefire in Ukraine if…

Putin's remarks come amid the G7 summit in Italy, where Group of Seven industrialised nations are meeting.

Updated on: Jun 14, 2024, 16:32:16 IST

By HT News Desk

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Russian president Vladimir Putin on Friday promised an immediate ‘ceasefire’ in Ukraine and begin negotiations if Kyiv withdrew troops from the four occupied Ukrainian regions and gave up plans to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, AP reported.

“We will do it immediately,” the Russian leader said in a speech at the Russian Foreign Ministry in Moscow.

Putin's remarks come amid the G7 summit in Italy, where Group of Seven industrialised nations are meeting.

The 71-year-old Russian leader was speaking on the eve of summit in Switzeerland where more than 90 countries and organisations are set to discuss a possible path towards peace in Ukraine, where war has been ongoing since 2022.

Russia has not been invited and has dismissed the gathering as a ‘waste of time’.

At present, Russia controls nearly a fifth of Ukrainian territory in the third year of the war. Kyiv has said that peace can only be based on a full withdrawal of Russian forces and the restoration of its territorial integrity.

Earlier in the day, Putin said that his troops' advance towards Kyiv two years ago was aimed at forcing Ukraine to agree to a peace deal and that there was no intention of storming the capital.

Ukraine and the West have claimed that Russia wanted to capture Kyiv and install Russia-friendly leaders, but was beaten back by fierce resistance.

‘No need to use nuclear weapons’, says Putin

On June 8, Putin had ruled out using nuclear weapons to win the war in Ukraine. “The use is possible in an exceptional case - in the event of a threat to the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country. I don't think that such a case has come. There is no such need,” Reuters had quoted the Russian leader as saying.

(With AP, Reuters inputs)

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HT News Desk
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