Moscow [Russia], August 22 : Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to meet Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, provided all issues relating to the settlement of the conflict between Moscow and Kiev are thoroughly worked out, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said.
Lavrov told RT on Thursday, "The Russian president repeatedly said that he is ready to meet, including with Zelensky, if there is an understanding that all issues that require consideration at the highest level have been worked out thoroughly" by experts and ministers.
Following his recent talks with Putin and Zelensky, US President Donald Trump suggested that the Russian and Ukrainian leaders should next meet one-on-one before a potential trilateral summit with him, RT reported. Zelensky, who visited Washington on Monday, claimed he is eager to negotiate with Putin.
Lavrov said the Ukrainian leader is pushing for a swift meeting with Putin to remain in the spotlight, adding that Zelensky is concerned the international community's attention towards him is declining.
The foreign minister also highlighted that Zelensky had previously rejected any talks with Putin and had signed a decree in 2022 banning such negotiations, which he has not yet cancelled.
"Clearly, his activity in relation to staging a summit with the Russian leader also has a goal of displaying his supposedly constructive focus on the settlement process, but in reality, it is simply about replacing the serious, hard, difficult work on agreeing the principles of a sustainable resolution of the crisis... with special effects and tricks in the style of KVN and Kvartal 95," Lavrov said, referring to shows in which Zelensky appeared during his time as a comedian, RT reported.
According to Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov, during their phone call on Monday, Putin and Trump supported the idea of continuing direct talks between Russia and Ukraine, which restarted in Istanbul in May, and discussed the option of raising the level of officials participating in them.