Ukrainian, British and Estonian officials chastise the Kremlin for apparently fruitless peace talks in Moscow. What we know on day 1,380
Ukraine’s foreign minister, Andrii Sybiha, has demanded Vladimir Putin “stop wasting the world’s time” while the UK foreign secretary, Yvette Cooper, said the Russian president “should end the bluster and the bloodshed” and sit down to negotiate peace. Margus Tsahkna, the Estonian foreign minister, said it was “pretty obvious” that the Kremlin was not interested in peace as European leaders reacted on Wednesday to apparently fruitless talks in Moscow between US envoys and Putin.
In Britain, King Charles spoke directly of “Russian aggression” as he hosted Germany’s president, Frank-Walter Steinmeier. The monarch said both countries “together stand with Ukraine and bolster Europe against the threat of further Russian aggression”. The king has strongly supported Ukraine’s fight since the outset of the Russian invasion. His latest remarks may prick the ears of Donald Trump, who, after once haranguing Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office, drastically changed his tune, at least for a time, after Charles indulged the US president with a state visit and impressed upon him the broader importance of Ukraine’s defence. The king also met Zelenskky directly after Trump and Vance humiliated Ukraine’s president at the White House.
