Kremlin rejects Zelenskyy proposal for G20 meeting with Putin
QAMISHLI, Syria (North Press) – The Kremlin on Saturday rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s proposal to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin at the upcoming G20 summit in Miami to discuss ending the war in Ukraine.
Zelenskyy said in a media interview that he would be willing to meet Putin at the December 14–15 summit, which will bring together leaders of the world’s major economies.
“It is impossible,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told AFP in New Delhi, reiterating Moscow’s position that any meeting between the two leaders should take place in Moscow.
Asked whether the Kremlin would consider another location, Peskov said there was “a readiness to meet him in Moscow.”
Putin has repeatedly rejected proposals for a direct meeting with Zelenskyy aimed at ending the war, which has continued for more than four years and caused widespread casualties and economic damage.
Zelenskyy’s latest proposal comes as Washington seeks to revive stalled negotiations. US President Donald Trump spoke with Putin this week, while US negotiators have held discussions in Kyiv and Moscow.
Trump’s special envoy Jared Kushner said Friday he hoped the next steps toward ending the war could be announced within “a couple of weeks.”
Meanwhile, Ukrainian officials warned that intensified Russian attacks on critical infrastructure, particularly the energy sector, could reduce the country’s GDP growth by 1.5 percentage points this year and make the coming winter “very difficult.”