Russian President Vladimir Putin has ruled out an immediate meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, despite a request from Kyiv, arguing that the priority should be achieving a lasting peace settlement rather than holding a summit.
Referring to an open letter from Zelensky, Putin said he saw no reason for a meeting at the current stage, maintaining that progress must first be made at expert level and the conditions for a durable peace agreement established.
“We must first arrive at a solution,” Putin said.
Investments
The Russian president added that he had only briefly reviewed the letter, which he said had been delivered to him the previous day by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.
Responding to Zelensky’s reference to his age, Putin said that “the main thing is not age, but the ability to work”. He also questioned why Kyiv did not view the administration of US President Donald Trump as a potential guarantor of a future peace process.
Speaking publicly for the first time about Zelensky’s open letter, Putin described the disclosure of their contacts as a mistake. His remarks came on the sidelines of the St Petersburg International Economic Forum following his keynote address.
Putin also claimed that a Russian businessman had met Zelensky in Kyiv. Addressing Russia’s armed forces, he added: “Keep working, brothers.”
At the same time, he acknowledged that Ukrainian attacks had caused some damage inside Russia but sought to reassure investors about the country's economic prospects, arguing that Russia remained an attractive destination for investment.
‘European elites creating chaos’
Earlier in his address, Putin accused “European elites” of creating chaos and seeking to draw more countries into it.
He argued that “the aggressive policy of the European bureaucracy” was short-sighted and was contributing not only to a further decline in the European Union’s position in the global economy but also undermining international security.
“We see the turbulence affecting energy markets, the way tensions are being created in certain regions, particularly now in the Middle East, as well as the short-sighted policies of the European bureaucracy,” Putin said.
“That policy is accompanied by aggressive rhetoric, leads to a further loss of Europe’s position in the global economy and, moreover, undermines regional and global security,” he added.
Inflation
Putin also argued that the “theft” of frozen Russian assets had damaged confidence in both the US dollar and the euro.
The Russian president further claimed that the contribution of the G7 economies to global growth had fallen behind that of the BRICS group.
“If we look at global GDP growth over the past five years, BRICS countries account for 49% of global growth, while the contribution of the G7 stands at 18%,” Putin told the forum.
Around 65% of Russia’s export transactions are now conducted in roubles, he said, while also warning that the country’s budget deficit could widen during the course of the year.
Putin stated that inflation in Russia had fallen significantly and was expected to reach around 5.2% in 2025.
The Russian president also accused Western countries of engaging in unfair competition, arguing that they “always have an excuse” for introducing measures that limit the ability of other countries to compete.
Among the examples he cited were the war in Ukraine, developments in the Middle East and Africa, and debates surrounding LGBTQ+ rights.
“One can always find a pretext for anything, but the root cause is unfair competition,” Putin said.
