Putin rejects Zelenskyy’s meeting to end war as Russian leader sees ‘no point’

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has seen his proposed meeting to end the war with Russia being rejected as Vladimir Putin has said the meeting would be “boorish” and sees “no point” in it

Russian President Vladimir Putin has rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s proposal to have a meeting following his open letter.

Speaking at the international economic forum in his hometown of St Petersburg on Friday (June 5), Putin described Zelenskyy’s open letter proposing the meeting as “boorish”.

Putin told the St Petersburg International Economic Forum: “And this letter truly does contain elements of rudeness. What is this? Is this a way to create conditions for personal meetings and negotiations? Or is it creating an environment in which it is truly impossible to hold any personal meetings at all? I think it’s the second.”

The Russian leader said that “so far, I see no point in this” with regards to having a meeting with the Zelenskyy. He also sent a message to Russian soldiers on the frontline: “The whole country is proud of you and is counting on you. Keep up the good work, brothers!”

Zelenskyy wrote written an open letter to Putin to hold a meeting between the two countries to finally end the war yesterday (June 4).

Zelenskyy told Putin in the letter that “Ukraine proposes to end this war” and it would be wrong to wait for the United States and Donald Trump as they are “fully focused on the issue of Iran.”.

In the letter, Zelenskyy writes: “The choice is yours now. Enough of war. Ukraine proposes to end this war. This must be done honestly, with dignity, and with guarantees that the war will not be reignited.

“We see that the United States is fully focused on the issue of Iran, and it would be wrong to simply wait until the war in Europe returns to the center of its attention.

“Ukraine proposes ending this war through direct engagement between us — and you. I am proposing a meeting.”

Strikes on Ukraine continue daily by Russian forces with Zelenskyy’s letter being one of the first signs of potential peace talks since US President Donald Trump attempted to help end the war with his special envoys.

However, despite Zelenskyy showing a willingness to end the war, which has now been rejected by Putin, he still had some strong words for Putin. He said his country would continue fighting if the Russian leader does not “personally come to the conclusion that it is time to end this war”.

Zelenskyy continued: “You know that the United States has the capability to monitor a ceasefire along the line where hostilities stop. Ukraine is ready for an all-for-all exchange of prisoners of war, and this could become a good prologue to ending the war.

“Serious steps must be taken to return civilians and children who were taken away during the war. We must determine what kind of future awaits the generations of Ukrainians and Russians who will come after us.

“If you do not personally come to the conclusion that it is time to end this war, Ukraine will continue fighting for its existence. We will have those who support us.

“But you, too, will have to fight much harder for your own existence — not Russia’s, but your own. And this is not a threat from me or from Ukraine. It is a fact of Russian history that you know well: when Russia grows tired, change comes. We can work toward that fatigue. You can stop your war. Eternal memory to all those whose lives were taken by this war.”

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