‘If Zelenskyy Is Truly Ready...’: Putin Aide Welcomes Ukraine President To Moscow

Last Updated:January 28, 2026, 20:48 IST

Putin aide Yuri Ushakov said Moscow has not ruled out talks with Zelenskyy, adding that any meeting must be prepared and aimed at concrete results.

World leaders attend Ukraine talks in Paris in December 2019, the last time Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelenskyy held formal talks. (IMAGE: AFP FILE)

A senior aide to Russian President Vladimir Putin this week said Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy would be welcome to come to Moscow for talks, a suggestion that Kyiv has repeatedly rejected as unacceptable.

“If Zelenskyy is truly ready for a meeting, then please — we invite him to Moscow," Yuri Ushakov, a top Kremlin aide, said in comments to state television reporter Pavel Zarubin, a Kremlin pool journalist whose interviews are often used to convey official Russian messaging.

The remarks were shared in a video clip by NEXTA, a Belarusian opposition-linked media outlet, on social media. News18 could not independently verify the authenticity or full context of the video.

“I would like to say a few words about his statement that Zelenskyy is ready for a meeting with the President of Russia. This is not a new issue for us. It has been discussed several times during telephone conversations between our President, Vladimir Putin, and US President Trump. During these conversations, Trump in particular suggested that we consider such a possibility," Ushakov is heard telling the reporter.

Ushakov said Moscow’s position on potential talks has been consistent, stressing that Russia has never ruled out such contacts but believes any meeting must be carefully prepared and focused on delivering concrete, positive outcomes rather than symbolic gestures.

“Our President has also said several times, while speaking to journalists, that if Zelenskyy is truly ready for a meeting, then we invite him to Moscow, and we will guarantee full security and all the necessary conditions for work."

Zelenskyy Refuses To Budge On Eastern Ukrainian Territories

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week said that a US document outlining security guarantees for Ukraine is fully ready and that Kyiv is awaiting confirmation on the time and place for it to be signed. Speaking at a news conference during a visit to Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, Zelenskyy said the guarantees were centred primarily on commitments from the United States.

Zelenskyy reiterated that Kyiv had not shifted its position on territorial integrity, even as Moscow continued to push Ukraine to relinquish eastern regions it has failed to fully capture since launching its full-scale invasion.

“These are two fundamentally different positions — Ukraine’s and Russia’s," Zelenskyy said, adding that the United States was attempting to broker a compromise. He stressed that any agreement would require all sides to make concessions, while maintaining that Ukraine’s sovereignty and borders were non-negotiable.

“For us, security guarantees are first and foremost guarantees of security from the United States. The document is 100% ready," Zelenskyy said, adding that once signed, it would be sent for ratification to both the US Congress and the Ukrainian parliament.

His remarks followed two days of talks in Abu Dhabi on Friday and Saturday, where Ukrainian and Russian negotiators met for the first time in a trilateral format that included US mediators to discuss Washington’s proposed framework for ending the nearly four-year-old war. While no agreement emerged, both sides indicated openness to continuing dialogue, and a US official said further discussions were expected on Sunday.

News world ‘If Zelenskyy Is Truly Ready...’: Putin Aide Welcomes Ukraine President To Moscow

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