By Vladimir Soldatkin
VLADIVOSTOK, Russia, Sept 3 (Reuters) – Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday there was a chance of a peace agreement to end the war in Ukraine, but restarting talks was harder because of Ukrainian attacks on shipping and a call by Kyiv for civilian aircraft to avoid Russian airspace.
Putin said a number of countries including the U.S. and China were ready to support a peace settlement.
“Ultimately, however, the problem must be resolved by the countries involved in the conflict — Russia and Ukraine,” he told an economic forum in Russia’s Far East. “We are grateful to everyone attempting to contribute to a settlement. Is there a chance? In my view, yes, there is.”
But in response to a question, he said Ukrainian attacks on civilian merchant ships and “reported threats of attacks on civilian aircraft” were “acts of state terrorism”, which he said “complicates the prospects for bilateral peace talks”.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned airlines and insurance companies this week that the presence of Ukrainian drones had made Russian skies dangerous, although he said Ukraine would target only Russian military facilities and not threaten civilian aircraft.
On Wednesday, Ukraine urged the U.N.’s aviation agency to ask members to ban operations in Russian airspace. Ukraine has been cut off from international civil aviation because its own airspace is considered unsafe since Russia invaded in 2022.
After 4-1/2 years of war, the front line has been largely static and no peace talks have taken place since February. Each side has ramped up long-range air attacks deep inside the other’s territory, while the war at sea has escalated sharply with attacks by both sides on ports and commercial shipping.
Putin said Russia was continuing its contacts with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, which has sought to broker a Ukraine peace deal.
“We favour restoring full-scale relations with the United States. However, this does not depend on us alone; it depends on the American side. But from what I understand, sense, and observe, President Trump is committed to such positive, constructive engagement,” he said.
Contacts were taking place between the two countries’ intelligence agencies and through Trump’s envoys, he said. The head of the CIA, John Ratcliffe, met Russian spy chiefs in Moscow last week but neither side has revealed what was discussed.
(Additional reporting by Dmitry Antonov, Ksenia Orlova, Gleb Stolyarov and Anastasia LyrchikovaWriting by Mark TrevelyanEditing by Peter Graff)
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