Vladimir Putin, in his annual TV marathon, expressed Russia's readiness to compromise for peace in Ukraine. This marks a shift from his previous stance of demanding Ukraine surrender occupied territories and abandon NATO aspirations.
This annual TV marathon is Vladimir Putin's happy place. He is center stage, holding court and putting the world to rights. The unusual format - part press conference, part phone-in - casts him as Russia's agony aunt-in-chief, fielding calls from ordinary citizens voicing their concerns and complaints. Those concerns have all been carefully screened, of course, to ensure he isn't asked anything too controversial. And the general theme is: Vlad'll Fix It.
Across four and a half hours, the topics ranged from phone scams and pornography to mortgages and the price of butter. The issue that cropped up most frequently, however, was the war in Ukraine - or the Special Military Operation, as Russia still refers to it nearly three years after it began. And on that front the Kremlin leader made his most newsworthy comments - that Russia is ready to compromise. It's the first time he's signaled a willingness to make concessions in order to achieve peace. Until now, he's always stated two conditions must be met for a ceasefire: that Ukraine hands over the four territories, in their entirety, that Russia occupies the majority of; and that Kyiv abandons its NATO ambitions. There was never any room for maneuver on those, but now it seems there is. Russia has no conditions for talks, he said. He also said he was willing to meet with Donald Trump, whose imminent arrival as US president seems to have precipitated the Kremlin's softening stance. Despite that shift, though, Putin was sounding confident on the war. He said Russia was close to achieving its primary goals in Ukraine, that Russia was in a stronger position now than at the start, and he even proposed a missile duel, to showcase the supposed invincibility of Russia's new 'Oreshnik' hypersonic missile
PUTIN UKRAINE WAR COMPROMISE RUSSIA
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