Fico says Putin interested in meeting Zelensky outside Moscow, as Russian leader contradicts
Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed interest in meeting with President Volodymyr Zelensky outside of Moscow, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico said following his meeting with Putin.
The Slovak prime minister told public broadcaster STVR in an interview on Sept. 6 that Putin told Fico that he would be willing to meet with Zelensky "anywhere else" but Moscow. Fico added that Zelensky had also expressed his interest to meet Putin during Fico's visit to Ukraine on Sept. 5.
The conversation between Putin and Fico came during a meeting between the two leaders on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in China on Sept. 2.
Putin seemingly contradicted Fico on Sept. 3, a day after his meeting with the Slovak leader, again inviting Zelensky to Moscow for a meeting.
"If Zelensky is ready, let him come to Moscow," Putin said, adding that he has "never ruled out" direct talks with the Ukrainian president.
Days later on Sept. 5, Putin said that he "doesn't see much point" in a meeting with the Ukrainian president.
The remarks from Fico comes as progress on peace talks between Moscow and Kyiv have stalled. Despite his claims, Putin has thus far repeatedly refused to attend an in-person meeting with Zelensky.
Zelensky on Sept. 5 dismissed the proposal to meet in Moscow, suggesting the Russian leader should come to Ukraine instead.
"He can come to Kyiv," Zelensky said in an interview with ABC News, laughing and shaking his head after being asked about the Moscow invitation. "I can't go to Moscow when my country's under missiles, under attack, each day. I can't go to the capital of this terrorist."
The meeting between the two leaders would be a crucial step toward negotiating an end to the full-scale war in Ukraine, now ongoing for three and a half years.
Following talks with Putin in Alaska on Aug. 15, U.S. President Donald Trump said he was working to facilitate a potential meeting between the Russian and Ukrainian leaders. The Kremlin has denied that any such agreement was reached.
Trump himself acknowledged this on Aug. 25, saying Putin didn't want to meet with Zelensky because "he doesn't like him," and on Aug. 28 German Chancellor Friedrich Merz became the first Western leader to write the meeting off, saying it "obviously" wasn't going to go ahead.
Several countries have been floated as hosting a potential Zelensky-Putin meeting, including Switzerland, Austria, Turkey, and Hungary.
