ST. PETERSBURG, Russia, June 4 – Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke on Thursday about the Ukraine war, compromises on peace agreed with U.S. President Donald Trump and whether or not he would stay in power until 2036.
Putin spoke to senior editors of news agencies including Reuters at a meeting in the Russian city of St Petersburg.
Following are his quotes as translated by Reuters.
WHEN ASKED ABOUT UKRAINE, CONTROL OF DONBAS AND PEACE:
“One does not exclude the other. Controlling the entire Donbas region and making a deal do not contradict each other. Why do you assume that this is in contradiction?”
“Russian troops are advancing along the entire front.” He said that Russia had taken control of more than 85% of the Donetsk region and had control of 80% of the Zaporizhzhia region.
“We are certainly ready and willing to reach an agreement with Ukraine by peaceful means. And specifically on the basis that we discussed at the meeting with President Trump in Anchorage. At that time questions were put before Russia so that we could make certain compromises. And Russia agrees to the compromises that we discussed in Anchorage. The Ukrainian side must also agree to these compromises. And the conflict will quickly come to its natural conclusion.”
ON TRUMP’S EFFORTS FOR PEACE
“The proposals that were made by President Trump, as I have already said, may well be the basis for peace agreements. Therefore, answering your question, whether the administration acted in the right direction or not, yes, this is a proposal that requires compromise, and compromise for both sides. For Russia, too. And we generally agreed with these compromises. We need to convince the Ukrainian side of this and that’s it. In general, I believe that they can well form the basis of an agreement between Russia and Ukraine and can put an end to this conflict.”
ON STAYING IN POWER TO 2036
Asked by Reuters whether or not he felt he had the stamina and health to serve that long, Putin said: “Only God knows if we have enough health – for me, for you, and for everyone gathered here, in order to live until tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, and even more so to solve some of the tasks we face, to achieve the goals that we set for ourselves.”
Putin, in power as either president or prime minister since 1999, said that the constitution allowed him to run again in 2030 and serve another term until 2036 if he won.
“Indeed, the Constitution allows me to run in 2030, but I think it’s too early to talk about it. To be honest, it’s very early. I’m not even thinking about it right now. I’m being completely honest. I don’t even think about it,” Putin said.
“The country faces a lot of large-scale and pressing issues. They need to be solved without thinking about it, but thinking about the future of Russia.” REUTERS
