Russian President Vladimir Putin has indicated that Russia’s protracted conflict with Ukraine could be drawing to a close. He made the comments to journalists following a subdued Victory Day parade on Red Square in Moscow, an annual event marking the Soviet Union’s defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945.
This year’s parade lacked the traditional procession of tanks and missiles due to security concerns over potential Ukrainian drone strikes. A ceasefire brokered by U.S. President Donald Trump over the weekend helped avert any incidents and allowed the ceremony to proceed smoothly.
As part of that deal, Moscow and Kyiv agreed to exchange 1,000 prisoners each, though Putin said on Saturday that Russia had yet to hear confirmation from the Ukrainian side.
Putin’s remarks followed his Victory Day address, in which he defended the war as a necessary stand against aggression. He cast Ukraine as a hostile entity armed and backed by the entire NATO alliance.
Responding to questions on Western support for Kyiv, Putin stated, “They (West) promised assistance and then began fuelling a confrontation with Russia that continues to this day. I think that the matter is coming to an end, but it is a serious matter.” Throughout, he referred to the invasion as a “special military operation.”
The roots of the crisis lie in 2014, when Russian forces seized Crimea and parts of eastern Ukraine, before launching a full-scale assault in February 2022. Putin set clear terms for any meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying it would occur only after a lasting peace treaty was finalised.
“A meeting in a third country is also possible, but only once final agreements have been reached on a peace treaty for a long-term historical perspective, to take part in this event and sign (treaty), but it must be a final step,” he explained. Dismissing Zelenskyy’s overtures, he added, “this is not the first time we have heard such statements.”
Putin voiced willingness to discuss new European security arrangements and named former German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, a longtime associate with ties to Russian energy giants, as an ideal negotiating partner. Attendance by international media was sparse, with many outlets denied access, and no military hardware appeared for the first time in nearly two decades.