Peskov: "No specific plans for negotiations on a moratorium on strikes against civilian targets yet"

Before talks between Moscow and Kiev can begin, it is necessary to “clear the legal obstacles,” Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters, commenting on President Putin’s statement that he would consider Zelensky’s proposal to “refrain from strikes on civilian infrastructure.”

On April 20, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in response to Russia’s Easter ceasefire, proposed to refrain from “any strikes on civilian infrastructure with long-range drones and missiles.”

Putin said that this initiative should be discussed, possibly “in a bilateral format, as a result of dialogue.”

In response to the question of how Moscow and Kiev can hold a dialogue if Russia has repeatedly stated that negotiations in Ukraine are officially prohibited, Peskov replied:

“If the Ukrainian side is open to this issue, perhaps some steps should be taken to legally remove these obstacles to such contacts, if there is such a willingness.”

Peskov noted that there are no concrete plans yet for negotiations on a ceasefire targeting civilian objects.

“First, it needs to be discussed, and President Putin has said he is ready to discuss it,” Peskov added.