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Putin-Zelensky meeting possible only when agreements are being finalized — spokesman

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready to meet with Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, but only for result-oriented talks at the stage of finalizing agreements, adding that Moscow sees no political will from Kiev. Zelensky has expressed willingness to meet outside Moscow and Kiev, suggesting venues like the US, Middle East, or Europe.

By Tertius News AI Desk 1 outlet · 2 articles Version 1 Coverage Apr 9–22, 2026 Published Aug 13

Lead

Moscow is open to a face-to-face meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, but only when it can produce concrete results, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. In comments reported by TASS on Tuesday, Peskov stressed that negotiations should take place at the stage when agreements are being finalized, and that they must be preceded by "serious work" and "political will on the part of the Kiev regime."

"The purpose of the meeting is what matters. Why hold a meeting? Putin said he is ready to meet in Moscow at any moment. A meeting with a purpose is what matters. A meeting with a result is what matters, and it can only be held to finalize agreements," Peskov said, as quoted by the Russian state news agency.

Coverage Comparison

The two TASS reports reflect differing angles on the same broader story. One report, published on April 22, centers on Peskov’s latest statements, emphasizing Moscow’s condition that any Putin-Zelensky meeting must be "result-oriented," and its assessment that Kiev currently lacks the political will for such talks. The other report, from April 9, highlights Zelensky’s expressed readiness to meet with Putin outside of Russia and Ukraine, and includes past statements about a Russian invitation for Zelensky to visit Moscow.

Both reports stem from the same news outlet, TASS, which is a state-run agency and is generally considered to reflect official Kremlin messaging. No independent or Western sources were included in the provided material, so the claims have not been independently verified.

Key Claims

According to TASS, Peskov said Putin is ready for a meeting with Zelensky, but it should be "result-oriented" and held "only to finalize agreements."
The same report quotes Peskov as saying that the meeting should be preceded by "serious work and, most importantly, by political will on the part of the Kiev regime," and that Moscow currently sees no such political will in Kiev.
In a separate TASS report, Zelensky, in an interview with Italy’s RAI radio station, said, "I am ready for a meeting with Putin, but certainly not in Moscow nor in Kiev." He suggested the Middle East, Europe, or the United States as possible venues.
The TASS report also cites Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov, who confirmed an invitation for Zelensky to visit Moscow, noting that Moscow was ready to ensure Zelensky’s security and create the necessary conditions. Ushakov emphasized that such a meeting should be carefully prepared to yield results.
The report further claims that Zelensky changed his rhetoric after Moscow expressed readiness to guarantee his security, and that he suggested holding the meeting in Kiev, making it appear that Moscow was the one seeking communication. This interpretation comes solely from TASS and has not been independently corroborated.

Perspectives

Moscow’s viewpoint: The Kremlin, as relayed through official spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, positions the interaction as pragmatic and conditional. The meeting is not an end in itself; it should serve as a tool for finalizing agreements. Moscow criticizes Kiev for lacking political will, which it views as the primary obstacle to talks.

Kiev’s viewpoint: Ukrainian President Zelensky, through his public comments, has expressed readiness to sit down with Putin but has ruled out Moscow or Kiev as locations, suggesting neutral third countries instead. His proposal reflects a desire for a safe and neutral venue, possibly aimed at reducing potentially symbolic or high-risk settings.

Observational context: The account of the invitation and the subsequent change in Zelensky's rhetoric comes exclusively from the Russian side, and no Western or independent sources have confirmed these details. As with many matters involving the Russia-Ukraine conflict, the two sides offer differing narratives about who initiated and who is blocking high-level talks. The absence of external confirmation does not necessarily discredit the claims, but readers remain without an independent verification of the sequence of events described.

How this outlet told it

TASS — English as of Apr 9, 2026, 8:45 AM UTC

Framing: Zelensky's willingness to meet with Putin — neutral

Facts Included:

Vladimir Zelensky is ready for a meeting with Putin, but not in Moscow or Kiev
Zelensky suggested meeting in the US, Middle East, or Europe
Russia had invited Zelensky to visit Moscow for an in-person meeting with Putin
Zelensky changed his rhetoric after Russia guaranteed his security

Read the source article →

TASS — English as of Apr 22, 2026, 10:15 PM UTC

Framing: Putin's conditions for meeting with Zelensky — slightly critical of Kiev

Facts Included:

Putin is ready to meet with Zelensky, but only for result-oriented talks
Moscow sees no political will from Kiev
Putin requires serious work and political will before a meeting

Read the source article →

What was claimed, and who backed it

Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status counts the distinct outlets we found asserting it — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.

Claim	Confidence	Status
ClaimVladimir Zelensky is ready for a meeting with Putin, but not in Moscow or Kiev. He suggested meeting in the US, Middle East, or Europe.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 9, 2026, 8:45 AM UTC
ClaimRussia had invited Zelensky to visit Moscow for an in-person meeting with Putin, and Moscow was ready to ensure Zelensky’s security and create the necessary conditions for work.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 9, 2026, 8:45 AM UTC
ClaimPutin is ready to meet with Zelensky, but only for result-oriented talks, and Moscow sees no political will from Kiev.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 22, 2026, 10:15 PM UTC
ClaimZelensky changed his rhetoric after Russia guaranteed his security, and he suggested that a meeting be held in Kiev, making it look like it was Moscow that sought communication.	ConfidenceMedium	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 9, 2026, 8:45 AM UTC
ClaimPutin requires serious work and political will before a meeting with Zelensky, and the meeting should be held at the stage when agreements are being finalized.	ConfidenceHigh	StatusSingle-source via TASS — English as of Apr 22, 2026, 10:15 PM UTC

Transparency & Audit Trail

1 outlet · 2 articles consulted: TASS — English 5 claims extracted Version 1 Written 2026-08-13