Kremlin Refutes Claims Russian Authorities Want to Kill Zelensky

On 24 February, Russia launched a special military operation to demilitarise and de-Nazify Ukraine following a request for help from the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics which saw weeks of intensifying shelling by the Ukrainian Army.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has denied reports that Russian authorities allegedly want to kill Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

"No, this is not true", Peskov said in an interview with the French TV channel LCI when asked about the allegations.

He also rejected allegations that the Kremlin had planned to overthrow the Ukrainian president.

"This is absolutely not true", Peskov said, adding that the Russian authorities "have never talked about the occupation of Ukraine".

Separately, the Kremlin spokesman touched upon the recent withdrawal of Russian forces from the Kiev region, which Peskov said was "a gesture of goodwill to create favourable conditions at the Russia-Ukraine talks".

He stressed that Russia is interested in President Zelensky "accepting" the conditions that were proposed by the Kremlin at the talks. According to him, the Kremlin "wants to put an end to the Russian special military operation [in Ukraine] via the negotiations".

Peskov was speaking in English, with his comments being translated into French.

Moscow-Kiev Talks

The Kremlin spokesman's remarks followed last week's round of talks between Moscow and Kiev in Istanbul, where Russia received a "clearly articulated position" from its Ukrainian counterparts, according to Russia's chief negotiator Vladimir Medinsky.

He said they had received written proposals from Ukraine confirming its readiness for "a neutral, non-aligned, and non-nuclear status, along with a refusal to produce and deploy all types of weapons of mass destruction, including chemical and bacteriological, and a ban on the presence of foreign military bases and foreign troops on the territory of the country".

Medinsky also announced Moscow's plans to take military de-escalation steps, in the form of a "significant reduction" of Russia's activities in the directions of Kiev and Chernigov. At the same time, he underscored that military de-escalation will not entail a ceasefire in these directions.

Russia's Special Op in Ukraine

The special operation to demilitarise and de-Nazify Ukraine was announced by Russian President Vladimir Putin on 24 February, following a request for assistance from the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics, which had witnessed weeks of intensifying shelling by the Ukrainian Army.

The Russian Defence Ministry emphasised that the operation only targets Ukraine's military infrastructure with high-precision weapons and that civilians are out of danger.