The Kremlin on Thursday responded to President Trump’s comments about Ukraine’s long-range drone attacks in Russia, which are supported by US intelligence.
At the NATO summit in Ankara, Trump acknowledged that the attacks are an “escalation” but one that could lead to an end to the conflict.
“This is a misconception. Rising tensions and further escalation cannot contribute to a peace process in any way,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.
“The more strikes the Kiev regime carries out on our infrastructure facilities, the wider the security zones we will need to create. Further escalation will likely prolong the special military operation to some extent, although I cannot say by how much, and it will certainly force us to create a broader buffer security zone,” Peskov added.
The Kremlin spokesman also responded to Trump, suggesting he would be willing to impose a no-fly zone over Ukraine as part of a security guarantee for a future peace deal.
“No one had previously raised the issue of closing the airspace. In any case, this would imply operational activities by NATO member states’ armed forces over Ukrainian territory,” Peskov said. “This is precisely what the special military operation is intended to prevent.”
Trump also said at the summit that he would allow Ukraine to produce Patriot missiles, though actually establishing production is expected to take several years. Despite Trump’s backing for Ukraine’s long-range drone attacks and other escalations, Peskov said Russia still believes that the US genuinely wants to end the war while acknowledging “discrepancies” in the US position.
“Still, unlike the Europeans, the United States maintains a willingness to help launch a peace process. Even if it sometimes misunderstands certain issues and makes mistakes, we believe this willingness is genuine, and we welcome it,” he said.
