MOSCOW, Sept 9 - The Kremlin expressed hope on Wednesday that U.S.-led peace negotiations aimed at concluding the conflict in Ukraine will recommence in the near term, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.
Peskov's remarks come after a break in direct talks between Russia and Ukraine that has persisted since February. In recent days, President Donald Trump dispatched negotiators to Moscow and then to Kyiv over the weekend in an effort to revive the stalled process.
Responding to a statement by U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio suggesting it may be possible to outline a roadmap to restart discussions and move toward an outcome acceptable to both sides, Peskov said Moscow would not make public any details of a potential settlement. He nevertheless said there was a "confirmed political will" to pick up the talks.
"We hope that these negotiations will resume in the foreseeable future, and we remain in contact with our American counterparts," Peskov said. His comments followed a telephone conversation between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin the day before.
Peskov also addressed the topic of prisoner exchanges between Russia and the United States, calling the issue "a constant item on the agenda", including at the level of the two presidents. He said that Russia had released one American prisoner, Robert Gilman, last month at President Trump's request.
Officials noted that prisoner swaps between the two countries have occurred several times over the past few years. The largest recent exchange cited by Russian officials took place in August 2024, when Russia secured the return of eight prisoners who had been held in the West. Among that group was a member of Russia's FSB security service who had been convicted of murder in Germany. In return, 16 people were released from prisons in Russia and Belarus.
Russian authorities said the August 2024 exchange included the release by Moscow of prominent Russian dissidents and three U.S. citizens, among them Wall Street Journal correspondent Evan Gershkovich.
Despite the stated willingness to resume U.S.-mediated talks, a significant divide persists between Moscow and Kyiv over the terms for ending the 4-1/2-year conflict. Kyiv has rejected Moscow's demands that it cede additional territory, a point Peskov did not address in detail, saying only that settlement specifics would not be discussed publicly at this time.