He claims Europe supports war and is blocking US efforts to broker peace in Ukraine.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said Tuesday that Russia was “ready” for war if Europe wanted it, accusing the continent’s leaders of attempting to torpedo a solution on the Ukraine conflict before meeting with US envoys.
The remarks came as US envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner arrived in Moscow for high-stakes negotiations aimed at ending the almost four-year war, which were preceded by days of feverish diplomacy.
“We are not planning to go to war with Europe, but if Europe wants to and starts, we are ready right now,” Putin told reporters in Moscow.
“They have no peaceful agenda, they are on the side of war,” he said, repeating his accusation that European leaders were impeding US efforts to broker peace in Ukraine.
He added that European revisions to Trump’s most recent plan to end the war “aimed solely at one thing — to completely block the entire peace process and put forward demands that are absolutely unacceptable to Russia.”
Washington submitted a 28-point plan to end the conflict, which was later altered in response to criticism from Kyiv and Europe, who saw it as meeting many of Russia’s maximalist demands.
The plan to end the war is championed by Trump, but European countries fear it risks forcing Kyiv to cave in to Russian demands, notably on territory.
Fearing additional Russian aggression, Europe has consistently stated that an unjust peace should not be imposed on Ukraine.
The Trump envoys are now attempting to finish the proposal with the assent of Moscow and Kyiv.