Putin Suggests Temporary Administration for Ukraine to End War
Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested Ukraine be placed under a form of temporary administration to allow for new elections and the signature of key accords to reach a settlement in the war, Russian news agencies reported early on Friday.
Putin’s comments, during a visit to the northern port of Murmansk, come amid US attempts to forge a settlement to the conflict by re-establishing links with Russia and engaging with both Moscow and Kyiv, in separate talks.
The Kremlin leader has been accused by Ukraine and European leaders of trying to prolong ceasefire talks without any serious intent of stopping fighting.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 has left hundreds of thousands of dead and injured, displaced millions of people, reduced towns to rubble and triggered the sharpest confrontation for decades between Moscow and the West.
Putin’s suggestion of a temporary administration appeared to address his long-held complaint that Ukraine’s authorities are not a legitimate negotiating partner as President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has stayed in power beyond the May 2024 end of his mandate.
