Approved by the Kremlin
However, the statements are unlikely to have any real political weight. If details leak out from insiders, it can be assumed that this is intentional – it can be assumed that Putin himself approved the message.
Their purpose is probably to shift the focus away from Moscow’s responsibility: Putin also claims that the West is hindering negotiations, which is not the case at the moment. Talks are constantly taking place in the background, but this is not communicated.
In addition, the claim that the West is stubborn downplays Kiev’s role: President Zelensky has ruled out negotiating directly with Putin as long as Russia is not prepared to make concessions.
Cause confusion
Such messages from the Kremlin often serve to send contradictory messages and cause confusion – especially in view of the upcoming European elections. In the Russian media, the Reutersreport was not even discussed, and two days ago, for example, Moscow began holding nuclear exercises on the Ukrainian border – that is a clear threatening signal.