Russia vows openness to talks, Ukraine steps up attacks
Peskov and other Russian officials have repeatedly rejected accusations from Ukraine and its allies of stalling peace talks.
Ukraine pummelled Moscow with an unprecedented number of drones as its army seeks to ramp up pressure ahead of a potential new round of ceasefire negotiations that could take place as early as next week.
Air defences in the Russian capital were busy fending off drones overnight and into Sunday as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy announced attacks deep into Russian territory are to be intensified.
Zelenskiy said on Saturday that Ukraine has proposed holding ceasefire negotiations with Russia next week but no date has been set so far.
The talks are set to be hold in Istanbul, the venue of previous rounds of negotiations, Russian state news agency TASS reported, citing an unnamed source familiar with the talks.
Ukraine and Russia last held direct negotiations in early June but an unconditional ceasefire in the war started by Russia more than three years ago remains unlikely as the Kremlin continues to insist on its demands.
Russian President Vladimir Putin "has repeatedly spoken of his desire to bring the Ukrainian settlement to a peaceful conclusion as soon as possible. This is a long process, it requires effort, and it is not easy," Peskov told state television in an interview.
"The main thing for us is to achieve our goals," he said.
"Our goals are clear."
The Kremlin has insisted that any peace deal would require Ukraine withdrawing from the four regions that Russia annexed in September 2022 but never fully captured.
It also wants Ukraine to renounce its bid to join the NATO military alliance and accept strict limits on its armed forces - demands Ukraine and its partners have rejected.
Trump threatened Russia on July 14 with steep tariffs and announced a rejuvenated pipeline for US weapons to reach Ukraine, hardening his stance toward Russia after months of frustration following unsuccessful negotiations aimed at ending the war.
The U.S. president said that he would implement "severe tariffs" unless a peace deal is reached within 50 days.
He provided few details on how they would be implemented but suggested they would target Russia's trading partners in an effort to isolate the country in the global economy.
with DPA
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