The Kremlin appeared to contradict President Trump’s previous claim that Russia would accept peacekeeping troops in Ukraine.
“There is a position on this matter that was expressed by Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, according to Politico. “I have nothing to add to this and nothing to comment on.”
Peskov was hosting a media call with reporters about the developing situation to end the Russia-Ukraine war. The call came just a day after Trump met with French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday.
Trump said he’d asked Russian President Vladimir Putin about peacekeepers and Putin had “no problem with it,” despite the Kremlin later dismissing the remarks, NBC News reported.
Peskov was referring to comments from Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov last week after Russian officials met with Secretary of State Marco Rubio to discuss ending the war.
Lavrov said it was “unacceptable” to Russia for NATO or other countries’ troops to be deployed “under a foreign flag, under the flag of the European Union or under national flags,” NBC reported.
The Kremlin has said in the past that if foreign peacekeepers were deployed in Ukraine, it would signal an escalation in the war.
The exchange and dismissal is the latest in the ongoing relations between Trump, Putin and other international leaders as they all negotiate a way to end the war in Ukraine.
The Hill has reached out to the White House for comment.
