During a press conference on Tuesday, the Kremlin publicly disagreed with President Trump’s claim that Russian President Vladimir Putin is ready for European peacekeepers in Ukraine.
The remarks were shared by Kremlin Dmitry Peskov, who insisted that nothing has changed at this point, despite Trump’s comments.
“There is a position on this matter that was expressed by Russian Foreign Minister [Sergey] Lavrov,” Peskov said. “Russia media site TASS reported. I have nothing to add to this and nothing to comment on.”
Peskov was referencing Lavrov’s recent remarks about Russia finding it unacceptable that NATO-aligned troops could be placed in Ukraine after a peace deal was struck. Lavrov made his remarks last week during a press conference following a meeting in Saudi Arabia with Trump’s delegation.
“So we explained today, the appearance of armed forces from the same countries, albeit under a foreign flag, under the flag of the European Union or under national flags, does not change anything in this regard,” Lavrov said, adding that “This is, of course, unacceptable to us.”
Despite Lavrov’s comments last week, Trump said Monday that Putin would have “no problem” with European peacekeepers being in Ukraine.
“Yeah, he will accept that. I’ve asked him that question,” Trump told reporters while with French President Emmanuel Macron in the White House.
“Look, if we do this deal, [Putin’s] not looking for more war. He doesn’t mind,” Trump said. “But I’ve specifically asked him that question. He has no problem with it.”
The remarks from Trump were made with Macron present, who has been vocal in his support for installing European troops in Ukraine to help keep the peace while talks continue.
Macron said on Monday that his nation’s soldiers would “be there to maintain peace, they would not be along the front lines, they would not be part of any conflict. They would be there to ensure that the peace is respected.”
In an interview, after Trump met with Macron, Putin said he had not discussed the Ukrainian war with Trump but that he would be open to future talks if the U.S. and Russia’s relationship improved.
“In order to say that we trust the Americans, we have to go a long way,” Peskov said, according to the Russian media site Interfax.
“We need to take many small steps towards each other that will contribute to the emergence and renewal of this atmosphere of trust. Much has suffered, much has been destroyed, so it is, of course, impossible to restore this overnight,” he added.