U.S. President Donald Trump's recent comments criticizing Russian President Vladimir Putin are the result of "emotional overload," Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on May 26.
The previous day, Trump wrote on social media that Putin had gone "absolutely crazy" and could be triggering "the downfall of Russia." The comments came after Russia heavily bombarded Ukrainian cities for three consecutive nights.
When asked about Trump's criticism of Russia's mass attacks, Peskov thanked Trump for his involvement in peace negotiations and attributed the U.S. president's comments to emotion.
"We are really grateful to the Americans and to President Trump personally for their assistance in organizing and launching this negotiation process," Peskov said, according to the Russian state news agency TASS.
"Of course, at the same time, this is a very crucial moment, which is associated, of course, with the emotional overload of everyone absolutely and with emotional reactions."
Olena Goncharova
The Trump administration has been attempting to secure a peace deal in Ukraine for months, after campaigning on promises to end the war in 24 hours if elected. Direct negotiations in Istanbul failed to produce a ceasefire agreement and Putin once again rejected calls for a 30-day truce in a phone conversation with Trump on May 19.
Instead, Putin offered to present a "memorandum regarding a potential future peace treaty" — something the Kremlin has yet to deliver.
Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Russia would submit a document outlining its settlement terms after Ukraine and Russia concluded their 1,000-for-1,000 prisoner exchange. The swap was completed on May 25.
Peskov said on May 26 that Russia was still "working on the text of a memorandum."
Trump has previously criticized Putin and threatened sanctions against Moscow in public comments, but has not gone so far as to impose actual penalties on Russia.
Russia has consistently refused to accept international calls for an unconditional ceasefire, insisting that it will only impose such a truce if Ukraine stops receiving all foreign military aid, among other extreme concessions. Ukraine has been ready to declare a 30-day ceasefire since March, when the U.S. first proposed a month-long truce.
The Kyiv Independent news desk
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