Yet to discuss peace plan on Moscow-Kiev conflict with US: Russian diplomat

Moscow, April 30 (IANS) Russia and the United States have yet to discuss the nuances of a peace plan, said Russian Permanent Representative to the United Nations Vasily Nebenzya, as both nations continue their dialogue on finding a peaceful solution to the Ukraine conflict.

"The Russian-American dialogue is ongoing, and lots of nuances regarding the future contours of a peace plan have yet to be discussed," Nebenzya told a UN Security Council meeting on Ukraine.

"Since the onset of the conflict, we have stated that we prefer diplomatic ways of attaining the objectives of our special military operation. This is why Russia is still committed to finding long-lasting solutions that would remove the root cause of the conflict and prevent it from reigniting," he further said.

Meanwhile, Acting Alternate Representative of the US Mission to the United Nations John Kelley said that Russia currently has a great opportunity for a durable peace in Ukraine, and the United States will fully support Moscow and Kyiv on their path to a "lasting peace."

"Right now, Russia has a great opportunity to achieve a durable peace. The burden for ending the war rests with Russia and with Ukraine," the US diplomat said at the UN Security Council meeting on Ukraine on Tuesday.

Kelley further said that if Russia and Ukraine accept the US peace proposal, there will be "immense" benefits in store for both nations.

"Their economies can begin to grow, their cities to rebuild, and their peoples to heal," he argued.

Earlier this week, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held a telephonic conversation with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, highlighting the importance of strengthening conditions to launch talks on achieving peace in Ukraine, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

"The focus was on the Ukraine crisis. As a follow-up to the April 25 conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US Special Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff, the foreign minister and the secretary of state emphasised the importance of consolidating the emerging prerequisites for launching talks in order to agree on a reliable path to long-term sustainable peace," the statement read.

"The parties continued a fruitful exchange of views on the key aspects of Russia-US political dialogue, which has significantly intensified recently," the statement added.

Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said earlier that President Putin was ready to resume negotiations with Ukraine without preconditions.

Furthermore, according to Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov, the conversation between Putin and Witkoff on April 25 which lasted three hours, was "constructive and quite useful."

--IANS

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