Putin says he is ready to negotiate while blaming kyiv and its allies for blocking dialogue

Russian President Vladimir Putin said this Sunday that he is ready to negotiate and find a solution to the conflict in Ukraine, which has already been going on for 10 months.

“We are ready to negotiate with all parties involved about acceptable solutions, but it is in your hands.

We are not the ones refusing to negotiate, it is them”, he stated on Christmas Day, in an interview on the national public broadcaster.

“I think we are acting in the right direction, we are defending our national interests, the interests of our citizens.

And we have no choice but to protect them”, said the Russian president, adding the president who has blamed kyiv for blocking the dialogue.

The Ukrainian authorities have reacted to Putin's words denouncing that his real intention is not to negotiate, but to “evade responsibilities”, according to what the adviser to the Ukrainian presidency, Mikhailo Podoliak, has published on Twitter.

“Russia is attacking Ukraine and killing its citizens.

There are no other countries, reasons, geopolitical ”, he added.

Fearing Russian attacks, throughout the morning, the anti-aircraft alarm has been activated in all regions of the country, including the capital.

Putin needs to come back to reality.

1. Russia single-handedly attacked Ukraine and is killing citizens.

There are no other "countries, motives, geopolitics"

2. Russia doesn't want negotiations, but tries to avoid responsibility.

This is obvious, so we are moving to the Tribunal.

— Mihaylo Podolyak (@Podolyak_M) December 25, 2022

In his speech, Putin accused the West of wanting to "divide" Russia.

At the same time, he has defended that the objective of his government is "to unite the Russian people."

“Everything is based on the politics of our geopolitical adversaries, who seek to divide Russia;

historical Russia.

Our goal is another: to unite the Russian people, ”he said.

A few days ago, just after the express trip of the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelensky, to Washington, Putin already said that he wanted an end to the war: "All armed conflicts end with diplomatic efforts."

“Our goal is not to increase the wheel of conflict, but the opposite: to end this war.

Our efforts are in that direction and we will continue to do so.

And, of course, the sooner, the better," the president explained at a press conference in the Kremlin on Thursday.

The White House played down Putin's apparently pacifying tone, explaining that he had shown no real indication of his willingness to negotiate an end to the war.

"Rather the opposite," Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said.

"All he [Putin] is doing is escalating the war."

Kirby stated that US President Joe Biden would be willing to speak with Putin as long as he showed "seriousness about the negotiation" and after consulting Ukraine and the rest of the Western allies.

Oil price rise

The Russian president planned to present, "this Monday or Tuesday" Moscow's response to the cap of 60 dollars per barrel that the EU, the G-7 and Australia have placed on Russian oil.

Putin affirmed that his country would not be harmed by this measure: "We do not lose anything because of that cap."

Despite that statement, the Russian president predicted a drastic rise in crude oil prices, which he has linked to the West's decision.

The Russian leader also referred to the explosions registered at the end of September in the Nord Stream gas pipelines, which cross the Baltic Sea and which suffered unprecedented damage from these explosions.

The investigations carried out, which found remains of explosives, ruled out that it was an accident;

they concluded that it was “blatant sabotage” and defined it as a hybrid threat.

Although Russia is the main suspect for the three governments investigating the matter (Germany, Denmark and Sweden), as well as for various experts, no formal charges have been filed.

Moscow, for its part, points to the West, while Putin has insisted this week that "the attack" is not being investigated.

In addition, on December 20, another explosion was recorded on another gas pipeline: on the Urengoi-Pomary-Uzhhorod,

'Deep concern' in Russia over long-range missiles

The trip to Washington of the Ukrainian president, Volodimir Zelensky, the first since the beginning of the war, almost 10 months ago, was a surprise.

Although it was not announced until the last moment, it has happened at a key moment.

Just these days, the Washington Congress was about to approve a new military aid package of 45,000 million to Ukraine, after confirming the shipment of Patriot surface-to-air missiles, one of the most advanced military systems in the world, to help kyiv.

The Patriot battery and its munitions, which unlike other systems provided to Ukraine can intercept and shoot down Russia's ballistic missiles and also hit targets much further away—between 40 and 160 kilometers, depending on the type of missile used—,

Putin has downplayed these weapons, saying they are "quite old" and adding that they do not perform as well as Russia's S-300 (Favorit) missile system.

In addition, he has assured that Russia will find "an antidote" against US weapons and that this delivery of weapons "will only prolong the conflict."

"This is not going to produce a rapid de-escalation, rather the opposite," insisted the Kremlin spokesman, Dmitri Peskov.

“In no case is it going to prevent the Russian Federation from fulfilling the objectives of the special military operation [in Ukraine],” he added.

Despite these statements, Russia is aware that this system can directly affect the contest.

The supply of these weapons "causes deep concern," in the words of Anatoly Antonov, Russia's ambassador to Washington and former deputy defense minister.

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