By Tim Frazer
Putin is playing a strange and strained game of cat and mouse with President Trump, continually dangling the prospect of peace talks while vigorously pounding civilians in Ukraine. Here is a report on his most recent move to absurdly blame the U.S. and Ukraine for the lack of progress in attaining a ceasefire. It’s about time for a brain massage with a ball bat.
After months of diplomatic stalling, the Kremlin on June 29 blamed Kyiv and Washington for the lack of progress in peace talks, with Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov saying the pace of negotiations hinges on Ukraine’s position, the effectiveness of U.S. mediation, and battlefield developments.
“A lot depends, naturally, on the position of the Kyiv regime,” Peskov told Belarus 1 TV, in comments reported by Reuters, adding: “It depends on how effectively Washington’s mediating efforts continue.”
Russia has repeatedly refused a U.S.-proposed ceasefire agreement, escalated attacks on Ukrainian civilians, and Russian President Vladimir Putin declared earlier this month that “all of Ukraine is ours.”
Peskov made the remarks in a televised interview, as the full-scale war enters its fourth summer with no comprehensive ceasefire in sight, and only two mostly inconclusive rounds of peace talks.
Russia and Ukraine have held two rounds of face-to-face talks in Istanbul this year — on May 16 and June 2 — following more than three years without direct negotiations. These meetings led to significant prisoner exchanges but achieved no meaningful progress toward a ceasefire.
During the June 2 meeting, both sides presented proposals for ending the war. However, Putin later dismissed the Ukrainian proposal for a 30-day unconditional ceasefire — backed by Western allies — as incompatible with Russia’s own offer of a limited 2–3-day truce solely to retrieve fallen soldiers.
“Russia rejects even the very idea of stopping the killings,” said Ukraine’s Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. “That’s why we appeal to the world: pressure is needed for real peace, not for an imitation of negotiations.”
Despite the impasse, Russia has expressed willingness to attend a third round of negotiations. “In general, we are ready for this,” Putin told reporters on June 27, suggesting Istanbul could again serve as the venue.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan confirmed Ankara’s willingness to host, and revealed that efforts are underway to arrange a direct meeting between Putin and President Volodymyr Zelensky — potentially with U.S. President Donald Trump also at the table.
Zelensky has voiced support for such a trilateral format, which he discussed during the recent NATO summit in Brussels. There, he and Trump also talked about expanding U.S. military support, including the co-production of air defense systems and drones.
So far, Trump has not implemented the additional sanctions on Russia that he vowed to impose if peace efforts stalled.
“If the Istanbul meeting brings nothing, that clearly means strong new sanctions are urgently needed,” Zelensky said on June 2.
Meanwhile, Russian forces are continuing their offensive in Ukraine’s southeast, making territorial gains in Donetsk and Dnipropetrovsk oblasts, and intensifying missile and drone strikes against civilian infrastructure.
No date has been announced for the next round of negotiations.
