Kremlin threatens to negotiate only with US and "toughen" its negotiating stance

Dmitry Peskov, Russian leader's press secretary, has said that Russia will not leave the negotiation process on ending the war in Ukraine but will conduct talks primarily with the Americans, and threatened to "toughen" Russia's "negotiating stance".

Source: Russian propagandists; Russian agency Interfax

Details: "Russia is not leaving the negotiation process. Russia will continue the negotiation process and dialogue primarily with the Americans," Peskov said.

At the same time, he threatened that the "diplomatic consequences" of the alleged attack on Putin's residence would "consist in toughening the negotiating stance of the Russian Federation".

Peskov also said that Russia was not going to explain publicly what the revision of its negotiating stance on ending the war would entail.

"Of course, just like the negotiating stance before this, we are not going to do this publicly," the Kremlin spokesperson said.

He also called "mad" statements denying an attack on Putin's residence.

"And I know that, naturally, we see that (Volodymyr) Zelenskyy himself is trying to deny it and that many Western media, playing along with the Kyiv regime, are starting to push the theme that, allegedly, it didn't happen. But this is an absolutely mad, mad claim," Peskov said.

In addition, Peskov said that "in the current conditions" he could not disclose where Putin was. "As for the president's whereabouts [N.B. Ukrainska Pravda does not recognise Putin as president – ed.], in the current conditions this topic is not subject to any public discussion," the Kremlin representative stressed.

Background:

• Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov claimed that Ukraine had struck the residence of Russian leader Vladimir Putin on the night of 28-29 December, warning that Russia's "negotiating position" would be revised as a result.
• Lavrov claimed that overnight, Ukraine attacked Putin's residence in Russia's Novgorod Oblast (probably Valdai) using 91 attack UAVs. He claimed that Russian air defence systems destroyed all the drones. Lavrov said that "Russia's negotiating position will be revised", but added that Russia does not intend to withdraw from the negotiation process with the United States regarding Ukraine.
• Ukraine has officially denied these claims.
• "Another lie by Russia. Obviously, yesterday we had the meeting with Trump, and obviously for the Russians, if there is no quarrel between America and us, and we have progress instead, then that is a failure for them. They don't want to end this war. They are only capable of ending it under pressure. And so they were looking, I am convinced, for reasons… and they are going further," President Volodymyr Zelenskyy commented.

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