Friday 17 / May / 2024
Russian President Vladimir Putin has said Moscow does not reject talks on Ukraine.
Speaking one day after a summit with African countries, Putin said that the African peace initiative could be a basis for peace, as well as another one earlier presented by Beijing.
Nevertheless, he added that it was difficult to implement a cease-fire when Kyiv was on the offensive.
Zelenskyy rejects the idea
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has rebuked the idea of a cease-fire, as it would allow Russia to keep control of nearly one fifth of Ukrainian territory. Ukrainian presidential adviser Mykhailo Podolyak said Putin's latest statements are "whining" and "tall tales."
Ukraine has said that it successfully attacked a land bridge to Crimea and has made advances near Bakhmut in the country's battered east.
The Chonhar Bridge, which links Crimea with Kherson, was damaged in the attack on Saturday morning, the Ukrainian army's strategic communications department said.
The bridge is an important supply route for Moscow's army and was previously attacked and damaged by Ukrainian troops in June.
