Kremlin Reaffirms Putin’s Claim Ukraine War Is Nearing End, Gives No Details

The Kremlin reaffirmed President Vladimir Putin’s claim that the war in Ukraine is nearing an end, while saying it is too soon to discuss specifics.

AFP reported on May 12 that Putin made the remark in a speech after Russia’s World War II Victory Day commemoration on May 9. He said “the war is coming to an end” but offered no further explanation, while continuing to criticize Western support for Ukraine, prompting debate over what he meant.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that Putin was referring to Russia’s openness to contacts and to trilateral talks involving the US and Ukraine that have made some progress. He added that enough groundwork has been laid in the peace process to say its conclusion is drawing closer.

But Peskov said it was impossible to discuss any concrete details at this point. He also welcomed US mediation efforts and said Putin is ready to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy once the peace process is settled.

Much preparatory work is still needed to bring the conflict to a complete end, Peskov said. He suggested the war could end once Ukraine and Zelenskiy make the necessary decisions.

Zelenskiy rejected that characterization on May 11. “Russia has no intention of ending this war,” he said. “And unfortunately, we are preparing for new attacks.”

The war in Ukraine is now in its fifth year. It has killed hundreds of thousands of people and become Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II.

Park Su-bin, Hankyung.com reporter, waterbean@hankyung.com