Putin says Kyiv must face consequences for attacks on civilian sites
Putin says Russia is still ready to resume talks after Ukraine's elections, even as he accuses Kyiv of striking Moscow and polling stations.
Published
Vladimir Putin says Ukraine has begun attacking civilian infrastructure and must now face the consequences, according to Tass. In the same remarks he says Russia remains ready to resume negotiations once Ukraine's elections are held, while accusing Kyiv of striking Moscow and attacking polling stations.
The exchange of accusations continues on the ground. Volodymyr Zelenskyy says Ukraine struck two refineries inside Russia overnight. Russia says it struck a dry cargo ship at the Port of Chornomorsk, a claim Ukraine has not confirmed.
The rhetoric comes as US and Russian envoys meet in Washington over a possible halt to strikes on energy sites. Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner met Russia's Kirill Dmitriev, following Dmitriev's talks in Washington on Wednesday and a session between Marco Rubio and Sergei Lavrov in New York.
Putin's threat of harsher strikes sits awkwardly with his own talk of resuming negotiations, and it lands just as Trump's envoys sit down with their Russian counterparts. Coupled with French warnings about Russian hybrid attacks on NATO members, it raises the risk that European states get drawn further into the conflict, and makes a near-term de-escalation less likely.