Russian President Vladimir Putin today held a telephonic conversation with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz during which he denied that Russian troops were bombing Ukrainian cities, dismissing such information as fake, the Kremlin has said.
Putin said reports about “the alleged ongoing airstrikes of Kyiv and other large cities are gross propaganda fakes,” the Kremlin says in a statement.
According to the AFP news agency, Putin dismissed such information as "enormously falsified propaganda".
Moreover, giving a slight hope to the ongoing conflict, Putin said that dialogue on Ukraine would be possible only if Russian demands are met.
Putin “confirmed that Russia is open to dialogue with the Ukrainian side, as well as with everyone who wants peace in Ukraine. But under the condition that all Russian demands are met,” the Kremlin says, reported AFP.
Meanwhile, Ukraine is planning to hold the third round of talks with Russian officials to try to end the fighting triggered by Moscow's invasion this weekend, said one of Kyiv's negotiators.
"The third leg could take place tomorrow or the day after, we are in constant contact," The Times of Israel quoted Ukrainian presidential advisor Mykhailo Podolyak.
During the second round of talks in Belarus on Thursday, Russia and Ukraine agreed to organize humanitarian corridors to evacuate civilians.
(with agency inputs)
