Kremlin says intensified Ukrainian strikes will prolong the war, rejecting Trump's call for escalation
The Kremlin said Thursday that intensified Ukrainian drone strikes will only extend the war, pushing back against President Trump's suggestion that escalation could force Moscow to negotiate.
Kremlin's warning
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Thursday that the more Ukraine strikes Russian infrastructure, the more Moscow will have to expand the security zone on the front. A new escalation, he added, would be able to prolong the special military operation, the official term for Russia's offensive since February 2022.
More the Kiev regime strikes our infrastructure, more we will have to extend the security zone.
Peskov dismissed Washington's belief that military pressure and escalation could favour a return to a peaceful settlement, calling it an erroneous idea. He said the aggravation of tensions and actions going in the direction of escalation will in no way contribute to the peace process.
US push for negotiations
The statement came a day after President Donald Trump said that the escalation of Ukrainian strikes could help lead to an end of the war launched by Russia. Secretary of State Marco Rubio added that Russians are having increasing difficulty defending their own airspace and that Washington hopes this situation will now allow the creation of the conditions necessary to negotiate the end of this war.
The escalation could help to lead to an end.
The Russians have more and more difficulty defending their own airspace.
Peskov responded Thursday by pointing to Washington's errors of judgment, reiterating that heightened tensions would not advance a peace process.
Civilian toll and drone campaign
Ukraine has for months been multiplying drone strikes, targeting refineries, oil depots and cargo ships at sea, causing fuel shortages in Russia. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Russian civilian losses over the last week amounted to 38 dead, without giving a precise location or date.
Over the last week, 308 civilians suffered from Ukrainian fighters. 38 people, including a child, were killed, and 270 others, including 8 children, were wounded.
OSCE report on children
A separate report by independent experts mandated by the OSCE found that 1.6 million Ukrainian children are living under Russian control and exposed to a system of indoctrination and militarisation. The experts concluded that Russia has put in place an institutionalised system to indoctrinate these children, which could amount to the crime against humanity of persecution. French expert Hervé Ascensio said children and their parents were targeted when they tried to keep their Ukrainian identity. Authorities in occupied territories sent military summons earlier than elsewhere in Russia to young people, and several youth interviewed had left the territories without warning their families to escape conscription.
We think that this system could amount to the crime against humanity of persecution.
Stalled mediation
US mediation efforts for a ceasefire have been deadlocked since the start of the war in the Middle East at the end of February. Despite renewed support for Ukraine shown by Trump at the recent NATO summit, the Kremlin said it sees a willingness on Washington's part to contribute to the establishment of a peace process.
