Russian President Vladimir Putin said the US proposal to end the war between Russia and Ukraine offered a starting point for the negotiations. But Putin urged Ukraine to step down or be invaded by larger Russian troops.
"We need to sit down and discuss this seriously," Putin told reporters at the end of his three-day visit to Kyrgyzstan.
He described US President Donald Trump's plans as "a series of issues raised to be discussed" instead of a draft agreement.
"If Ukrainian troops withdraw from the territory they occupy, hostilities will stop. If they don't back down, we will achieve it by force," Putin said.
So far, Kremlin officials have not commented much about Trump's peace plan last week. Since Russia's invasion of neighboring Putin has shown no desire to give in to its goals in Ukraine despite Trump's urgent settlement.
Putin previously demanded that Ukraine fully withdraw from the entire Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhia regions before Russia considered any form of "peace negotiations", especially covering areas in each Russian unoccupied oblast. He also wants to prevent Ukraine from joining NATO and hosting Western troops, so Moscow can gradually withdraw the country back into its orbit.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff is scheduled to visit Moscow next week, according to the Kremlin, while US Secretary of the Army Dan way, who in recent weeks have played an important role in peace efforts, is likely to head for Kyiv.
The initial US peace proposal appeared to be highly inclined towards Russia's demands, but an amended version emerged from negotiations in Geneva on Sunday between American and Ukrainian officials.
European leaders who are "set aside", fearing for their own security amid Russian aggression, are seeking deeper engagement in the process.
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