President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Good afternoon, colleagues.
I have asked you to gather today to brief you on the progress of negotiations regarding the Ukraine crisis and the bilateral talks with the Ukrainian delegation. Many of those present are already broadly aware of the situation, but I will provide more detailed information. That is the first matter.
Second, I will update you on the current stage of our engagement with the present US administration, which, as everyone knows, has been making what I consider to be fairly vigorous and sincere efforts to halt hostilities, resolve the crisis, and reach agreements that serve the interests of all parties involved in this conflict. The aim is to establish long-term conditions for peace not only between our countries but also in Europe and indeed globally – especially if we proceed to subsequent stages involving agreements on strategic offensive arms control.
That is what I would like to say by way of introduction.
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