US President Trump wants a meeting between Putin and Zelenskyy soon.

An imminent summit between Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is unrealistic for Russia. "Putin is ready to meet with Zelensky once an agenda for the summit has been prepared, and that agenda is far from ready," Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told the US television network NBC.

US President Donald Trump had called for such a meeting to end Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine. Moscow has so far been evasive about the issue.

Lavrov now said that the issues that must be resolved before such a meeting include territorial cessions and Ukraine's renunciation of membership in the Western military alliance. "Zelenskyy has said no to everything," Lavrov said.

In the course of the invasion that began three and a half years ago, Russia has almost completely captured the eastern Ukrainian region of Luhansk and partially captured the Donetsk, Zaporizhia, and Kherson regions claimed by the Kremlin. In return for a freeze on the front in Zaporizhia and Kherson, Putin reportedly demands that Kyiv completely surrender the Luhansk and Donetsk regions. Russia has controlled the Crimean peninsula, also claimed by Moscow, since 2014.

Following the Alaska summit last Friday, US President Trump, Zelensky, and European leaders discussed a peace process for Ukraine on Monday. According to Trump's proposals, the next step will be a meeting between Putin and Zelensky.

Zelenskyy had accused Moscow of being uninterested in peace. "Frankly, the signals from Russia at the moment are simply indecent," he said. "They are trying to wriggle out of the need for a meeting. They don't want to end this war. They are continuing their massive attacks against Ukraine and their very fierce attacks on the front lines."

Meanwhile, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte praised Trump during a visit to Kyiv on Friday. Trump has brought momentum to the negotiations. He "also made it clear that the US will be involved in providing security guarantees for Ukraine," Rutte said. He described the guarantees as an important factor for lasting peace in Ukraine.