Nothing “promising” or “hacked” according to the Kremlin

The Kremlin said on Wednesday that talks between the Russian and Ukrainian delegations in Istanbul on Tuesday did not result in anything “very promising” or “a breakthrough”, dimming hopes of decisive progress in the negotiations.

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“At the moment, we cannot report anything very promising or any breakthrough. There is a lot of work to be done,” Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.

However, he described the fact that the Ukrainian side had “finally begun to formulate its proposals in a concrete manner and put them in writing”, as “positive”.

“We carefully avoid making public statements about the substance” of the talks, because “we believe that the negotiations should take place” discreetly, he added.

These statements contrast with those of Russian officials who took part in the discussions that took place on Tuesday in Istanbul, which is the most positive thing.

At the end of these talks, the head of the Russian delegation and representative of the Kremlin, Vladimir Medinsky, reported on “substantial discussions” and said that Ukraine’s “clear” proposals for an agreement “will very soon be studied and presented to the President” Vladimir put it in.

The Russian Deputy Defense Minister also said that Moscow would radically reduce its military activity in the direction of Kyiv and Chernigov in the north of the country.

These assertions have been met with skepticism by Western capitals, who accuse Moscow of not really seeking a negotiated solution beyond a semblance of goodwill.

On the ground, the governor of Ukraine’s Chernigov region said, on Wednesday, that the bombing took place “all night,” despite the Russian promise.