Putin questions ceasefire plan and sets string of conditions

Vladimir Putin said yesterday that he had many questions about the proposed US-brokered ceasefire with Ukraine, and appeared to set out a series of sweeping conditions to be met before Russia would agree to such a truce.

-  Pjotr Sauer and Shaun Walker Andrew Roth

Speaking at a press conference at the Kremlin alongside the Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, Putin said that he agreed in principle with US proposals to halt the fighting but he wanted to address the "root causes of the conflict".

"The idea itself is correct, and we certainly support it," Putin said. But he suggested Ukraine should neither rearm nor mobilise and that western military aid to Kyiv be halted during the 30-day ceasefire.

Before a meeting with the Nato secretary general, Mark Rutte, Donald Trump responded briefly, saying that Putin had "made a very promising statement, but it was not complete". The US president said he was "ready to talk to Putin".

"We will see if Russia agrees, and if not, it will be a very disappointing moment. I would like to see a ceasefire from Russia. We hope that Russia will do the right thing." Putin claimed that Ukraine was seeking a ceasefire because of the battlefield situation, asserting that Russian forces were "advancing almost everywhere" and nearing full control of Russia's Kursk region, where Kyiv launched a surprise incursion last year.

"How will these 30 days of [ceasefire] be used? To continue forced mobilisation in Ukraine? To supply weapons to Ukraine? ... These are legitimate questions," he said.

Ukraine has previously indicated it would continue its mobilisation efforts during the 30-day ceasefire. "We need to discuss this with our American partners perhaps a call with Donald Trump," Putin added, thanking the US president for his involvement in the peace negotiations.

By avoiding an outright rejection of Trump's ceasefire proposal, Putin appears to be balancing between not openly rebuffing the US president's push for peace while imposing his own stringent demands - potentially prolonging negotiations.