Experts in Russia yesterday called an open letter penned by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy to Russian President Vladimir Putin a public relations stunt, while on Thursday Putin said that Russia would boost its air defenses to counter Ukrainian drone attacks, which have reached deep inside his country and cast a cloud over his showcase economic forum in his hometown of St Petersburg.
Speaking in response to a question from reporters during a meeting with heads of international news agencies, Putin acknowledged the damage from Ukrainian drone attacks.
“To our regret, some of them break through,” Putin said of the drone strikes. “Russia has an air defense system, we need to improve it, strengthen it, and we will do that.”
Photo: AP
The wide-ranging media session came on the sidelines of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, Russia’s annual showcase for investment.
Hours before the forum opened on Wednesday, a Ukrainian drone attack set ablaze an oil terminal in the city and also hit a nearby naval base.
Putin said that Russia is open for a compromise on Ukraine in line with understandings reached at his summit with US President Donald Trump in Anchorage, Alaska, adding that Ukraine needs to accept them to make a deal to end the conflict, now in its fifth year.
Also on Thursday, Zelenskiy proposed face-to-face negotiations in the letter addressed directly to Putin.
Zelenskiy proposed that the two leaders meet to agree to an end to the fighting.
Putin, who was to speak later yesterday at the forum — had not responded to the letter, but his spokesman said he had been briefed on its contents.
Zelenskiy acknowledged shifting US priorities, saying it would be wrong to wait for Washington to return its attention to Ukraine while it remains heavily focused on the Iran war.
In Washington, Trump said it “would be great” if Putin and Zelenskiy meet.
Russian nationalists said that the letter was a malicious public relations stunt designed to stir up discontent inside Russia rather than end the war.
“If you look at the text of the statement itself, there is not a whiff of genuine diplomacy to be found,” said Rybar, a war blogger with more than 1.5 million followers, who described it as a bluff.
“A significant portion of the letter consists of direct insults, rhetoric about ‘your war without cause,’ threats to Russian citizens of ‘drones over your cities,’ and claims about fuel shortages and an alleged new wave of mobilization,” he said.
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