Russian President Vladimir Putin said in front of leaders at the Group of Twenty (G20) summit on Wednesday that the war in Ukraine is "a tragedy," adding that it was important to think about a way to bring the conflict to an end.
Putin's statement at Wednesday's virtual meeting was the first time that the Kremlin leader has addressed the G20 leaders since launching his invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Both Moscow and Kyiv have suffered heavy losses in the 21-month-long war as Ukraine continues to press on to recapture large swaths of territory still occupied by Russia.
"Some colleagues have already said in their speeches that they are shocked by the 'continuing aggression of Russia in Ukraine,'" Putin told fellow world leaders, according to a report by the Russian state-owned media outlet Tass.
"Yes, of course, military actions are always a tragedy," he continued. "Specific people, specific families, and the country as a whole. And, of course, we must think about how to stop this tragedy."
Newsweek reached out to Ukraine's Foreign Ministry via email for comment Wednesday.
Putin put the blame on Ukraine for refusing to discuss negotiations to bring the war to an end, according to Tass. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelesnky told Fox News this week that he was "of course" ready to discuss ending the war but has repeatedly vowed that fighting will not cease until all Russia-occupied territory, including Crimea, is returned to Kyiv's control.
Putin illegally annexed Crimea in 2014, and the Black Sea peninsula has served as a strategic stronghold in Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Moscow also held sham elections that illegally annexed large parts of southern and eastern Ukraine last fall.
Kremlin officials have said that they are ready to discuss peace talks with Ukraine as long as Western countries agree to a set of conditions. Kyiv's allies, including the United States, have played a major role in bolstering Ukraine's defense capabilities against Russia's aggression, and Moscow has accused Washington of escalating the conflict.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said during an October interview with Russian state media outlet RIA Novosti that Russia was "always ready to listen to our Western colleagues if they make another request to organize a conversation," adding, however, that the West would have to "fully take into account the interests of the Russian Federation and its security" in negotiations.
Update 11/22/23, 12:34 p.m. ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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