Destroyed Russian military machinery and damaged Ukrainian civilian vehicles, displayed near the St. Mykhailivsky Cathedral in downtown Kyiv, Ukraine, 04 June 2024, amid the Russian invasion. Russian troops entered Ukrainian territory on 24 February 2022, starting a conflict that has provoked destruction and a humanitarian crisis. EPA-EFE/SERGEY DOLZHENKO Putin said Russia was ready to guarantee the safe withdrawal of Ukrainian units in order to enable this to happen.
He was speaking on the eve of a summit in Switzerland where more than 90 countries and organisations are due to discuss a possible path towards peace in Ukraine. Russia has not been invited and says the gathering is a waste of time.
Russia controls nearly a fifth of Ukrainian territory in the third year of the war, and Ukraine says peace can only be based on a full withdrawal of Russian forces and the restoration of its territorial integrity.
(Reporting by Reuters, writing by Mark TrevelyanEditing by Andrew Osborn)