It is Kiev and Washington that must decide that they want the conflict to end, the Belarusian leader has said

Russia has long been ready not only for a truce, but also for a lasting peace with Ukraine, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Friday. He made the comment after Ukraine's Vladimir Zelensky declared that Kiev is prepared to implement an immediate and "complete" 30-day ceasefire with Moscow.

A truce could be implemented "from this very minute," Zelensky said in a message posted on his official Telegram channel following talks with US President Donald Trump on Thursday. He added that such a move would "create many opportunities for diplomacy."

Lukashenko was asked about Zelensky's offer following the Victory Day parade on Red Square in Moscow. He replied that he and Russian President Vladimir Putin had discussed a possible settlement to the Ukraine conflict during their meeting in late April. The Russian authorities "are ready for this. Russia has long been ready not just for a ceasefire, but for a peace agreement" with Kiev, he said.

"The issue is not with Russia. Therefore, we need to sort things out on the other side, as far as I know. As soon as the Americans and the Ukrainians decide that peace is needed, the Europeans will fall in line, and peace will come," Lukashenko said.

Despite insisting on a 30-day truce, Zelensky dismissed Putin's proposed Victory Day ceasefire from midnight on May 7-8 to midnight on May 10-11, as a Russian ploy and an "attempt at manipulation."

Kiev instead intensified drone attacks on Russian territory, over 500 were brought down in a single night, and made several failed attempts at incursions into Russia's Kursk and Belgorod regions, according to the Defense Ministry in Moscow.

Moscow has dismissed previous offers of a 30-day truce as "unrealistic," arguing that Ukraine would use the pause to regroup its forces and replenish weapons supplies.

In March, Moscow agreed to a US-brokered 30-day partial ceasefire aimed at halting strikes on energy infrastructure. The Russian military has accused Kiev of repeatedly violating the truce.

Moscow has recently stated that it is ready for direct talks with Ukraine "without preconditions" to seek a permanent resolution to the conflict that addresses its underlying causes.

(RT.com)