Washington could stop providing direct assistance to Kiev to help bring hostilities in Ukraine to an end sooner, Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov told Vesti correspondent Pavel Zarubin.
Ushakov also noted that he had not seen any roadmap for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine and suggested that Abu Dhabi could again host trilateral settlement talks with Kiev if they resume.
TASS has compiled the Russian presidential aide’s key statements.
US assistance to Ukraine
Washington could stop providing direct assistance to Kiev to help end hostilities in Ukraine sooner: "First and foremost, probably, stop providing any assistance to Kiev."
US assistance to Ukraine, including military aid, has declined noticeably during Donald Trump’s current presidency: "Compared with previous presidencies, when assistance to Kiev, including military aid, was massive, it has, of course, declined noticeably under Trump. That must be acknowledged."
Roadmap for Ukraine settlement
"I have not yet seen a roadmap [for a settlement in Ukraine], and I think probably no one has."
Possible resumption of trilateral talks
Moscow and Washington discussed the possibility of resuming contacts with Ukraine on a peaceful settlement, including trilateral talks: "We discussed the possibility of resuming contacts with the Ukrainian side, including in a trilateral format."
Abu Dhabi could again host trilateral settlement talks with Ukraine if they resume: "There are some contacts [with the Ukrainian side], but what we are discussing now is resuming the negotiating process with Ukraine that took place earlier. We also discussed this with our American colleagues, so this process may resume in a trilateral format. Our representatives met in Abu Dhabi, for example, and meetings could certainly continue there."
Contacts with US
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s meeting with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner was constructive, substantive and businesslike: "I would say the conversation was constructive overall, but naturally, the most contentious issues were also discussed. So this contact was not only constructive but also substantive and businesslike."
The same description applies to yesterday’s telephone conversation between Putin and Trump: "It was something of a follow-up to Kushner and Witkoff’s trips to Moscow and Kiev. So the discussion covered the situation surrounding those visits and what the two sides could do next to advance both bilateral dialogue and efforts to resolve the Ukrainian crisis."
