Moscow deals blow to Ukraine peace talks

Moscow threw Donald Trump's Ukraine peace initiative into disarray yesterday, insisting it must have a veto over any postwar support for the country as its forces carried out a large-scale overnight missile barrage.

- Pjotr Sauer

In a series of hardline remarks, Russia's foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, said European proposals to deploy troops in Ukraine after a settlement would amount to "foreign intervention", which he called absolutely unacceptable for Russia.

Lavrov said Russia wanted to return to discussing a framework first proposed during the initial peace talks held in Istanbul in 2022, under which Moscow and Beijing would help guarantee Ukraine's security alongside European allies - terms Kyiv considers unacceptable. "We support the principles and security guarantees that were agreed... in April 2022," Lavrov said. "Anything else... is of course an absolutely futile undertaking."

European leaders are exploring possible security guarantees for Ukraine after the war, building on Trump's promise to back the country under any settlement with Russia. France, Britain and Estonia have indicated willingness to send troops to a postwar Ukraine, while several other nations said they might take part, though much depends on US involvement.