Putin agrees to meet Zelensky

[Anchor]

President Putin of Russia has agreed to meet with President Zelensky.

However, there still seems to be a significant gap in positions regarding the handling of Russian-occupied territories and the deployment of NATO troops in Ukraine.

This is Song Young-seok reporting from Berlin.

[Report]

President Putin has also conveyed to President Trump his intention to meet with Ukrainian President Zelensky within the next two weeks.

[Yuri Ushakov/Russian Kremlin Foreign Policy Advisor: "(During the U.S.-Russia leaders' call), the idea was discussed that it would be worthwhile to explore the possibility of raising the level of representatives from the Ukrainian and Russian sides."]

President Zelensky has also withdrawn his previous condition of a ceasefire before negotiations.

[Volodymyr Zelensky/President of Ukraine: "If Ukraine proposes conditions like a ceasefire, Russia will present 100 conditions. I believe both sides should meet without any conditions."]

A neutral country like Switzerland, or Turkey, where the two countries have conducted prisoner exchange negotiations, are being mentioned as potential venues for the talks.

If the talks take place, heated negotiations are expected over the status of eastern Ukraine's Donbas region, currently occupied by Russia.

Russia is also closely watching the security guarantee measures for Ukraine, which the U.S. and Europe seem to have somewhat agreed upon.

Russia issued a statement around the time European leaders arrived at the White House, firmly rejecting any scenario of deploying NATO troops in Ukraine.

Russia has raised its voice, urging Europe to withdraw from negotiations, accusing it of recklessly continuing a gamble by putting Ukraine at the forefront, but Europe also remains skeptical about whether President Putin is genuinely willing to end the war.

This is Song Young-seok from KBS News in Berlin.