Russia Would Need Generations To Recover, Says Zelenskyy. Putin Accuses Ukraine Of 'War Crimes'

As the negotiations continue for weeks between Russia and Ukraine, Moscow’s top negotiator said on Friday that both nations had brought their positions "as close as possible".

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New Delhi: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday has once again stressed comprehensive peace talks with Moscow, saying Russia would otherwise need generations to recover from losses suffered during the conflict.

In a video address released in the early hours of Saturday, Zelenskyy said Ukraine had always offered solutions for peace and wanted meaningful and honest negotiations on peace and security, without delay.

"I want everyone to hear me now, especially in Moscow. The time has come for a meeting, it is time to talk," he said, as quoted by news agency Reuters.

"The time has come to restore territorial integrity and justice for Ukraine. Otherwise, Russia's losses will be such that it will take you several generations to recover," he added

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday accused Ukraine of "war crimes" in a call with his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron, news agency AFP reported.

He said Moscow was doing "everything possible" to avoid civilian deaths in Ukraine.

Russia Calls For Neutral Ukraine Status Amid Demand For Security Guarantees

As the negotiations continue for weeks between Russia and Ukraine, Moscow’s top negotiator said on Friday that both nations had brought their positions "as close as possible" on a proposal for Ukraine to become a neutral state, AFP reported citing Russian news agencies.

Earlier, Kremlin had signalled for a neutral Ukraine along the lines of Sweden or Austria was being discussed at talks with Kyiv to end three weeks of a Russian military operation there. However, Ukraine rejected the proposal saying it wanted its security to be guaranteed by international forces.

"The topic of neutral status and Ukraine's non-accession to NATO is one of the key points of the talks, this is the point on which the parties brought their positions as close as possible," Russia's lead negotiator Vladimir Medinsky said, as reported by Russian news agencies.

He added that there were "nuances" when it came to "security guarantees" requested by Ukraine.

On its part, Russia has requested that its neighbour never join the Western NATO military alliance, as well as demanding its "demilitarisation" and "denazification".

Medinsky said Friday that negotiators were "halfway" towards an agreement on the "demilitarisation" of Ukraine.

What Is Ukraine's Status On Negotiations?

Mykhailo Podolyak, an advisor to Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky clarified that his country's position had not budged. "Negotiation status. The statements of the Russian side are only their requesting positions," he wrote on Twitter.

"All statements are intended, inter alia, to provoke tension in the media. Our positions are unchanged. Ceasefire, withdrawal of troops & strong security guarantees with concrete formulas," he added.