Austrian chancellor offers country as venue for Russia-Ukraine peace negotiations

"Austria will be ready to support a just and lasting peace based on international law and to serve as venue for negotiations as the seat of the OSCE," the official wrote.

Nehammer also acknowledged Russian President Vladimir Putin's statements about his willingness to engage in peace talks with Ukraine. "Any negotiations must take place without preconditions and at eye level," the chancellor stated.

Putin claimed on Sept. 2 that Russia has "never refused" peace talks with Ukraine. However, he first wants to "expel bandits" from Russia's Kursk Oblast.

The dictator changed his previous condition for starting peace talks with Ukraine. Now, he demands the withdrawal of Ukrainian Armed Forces from Kursk Oblast. Previously, in June 2024, he stated that for the cessation of hostilities, Ukraine must completely withdraw its troops from the territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhya oblasts within their administrative borders.

After the start of the Ukrainian Armed Forces operation in Kursk Oblast, the Kremlin declared the impossibility of negotiations.

Ukraine-Russia negotiations

Talks between Ukraine and Russia took place in Istanbul on March 29, 2022. By the second half of spring, the negotiation process had stalled.

The New York Times published documents on June 15, 2024 related to the peace talks between Ukraine and Russia. According to the released documents, contentious issues included the level of armament of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, conditions for Ukraine's potential membership in the European Union, and certain Ukrainian laws on language and culture that Russia wanted to repeal.

Putin outlined his "conditions" for ending the war against Ukraine on June 14 ahead of the peace summit in Switzerland, to which Russia was not invited. The dictator demanded that Ukraine "withdraw its troops" from the territories of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhya oblasts within their administrative borders and that Ukraine renounce its bid to join NATO.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated on June 16 in Switzerland that the Istanbul talks between Ukraine and Russia in 2022 were unsuccessful due to Russia's ultimatums. Zelenskyy noted that Russia's position and that of its dictator have not changed, and "there were many ultimatums," including the latest proposals for ending the war.

The Spanish newspaper El Pais, citing confidential reports from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, reported on July 10 that Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping see the possibility of negotiations between Ukraine and Russia starting by the end of the year.