MOSCOW: Moscow has accused the Western nations of preventing peace negotiations with Ukraine and thus dragging out the war.

“Now is the moment when Western countries are betting everything on a continuation of the war,” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told state television. Under the leadership of the United States, the West was not allowing Ukrainians “to think about peace, nor to talk about it, nor to discuss it,” Peskov said, referring to statements by Western politicians who had said they did not want to pressure Ukraine into negotiations.

Nevertheless, the moment for negotiations will come, he said. For peace, however, Ukraine must accept Russia’s demands, which include the recognition of the Black Sea peninsula of Crimea as Russian territory and the cession of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, Peskov said.