The Russian Presidency said on Thursday that the escalation of Ukrainian strikes on Russian territory serves only to "prolong" the war, in an indirect response to US President Donald Trump, who had argued that the attacks could push Moscow to negotiate terms for ending the conflict.
"The more the Kyiv regime strikes our infrastructure, the more we must expand the security zone" along the front lines, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. Every "new escalation" results in "prolonging the special military operation", he added, using the Kremlin's term for the war.
Washington sees pressure as a path to talks
On Wednesday, Mr Trump suggested that the escalation of Ukrainian strikes could "help bring to an end" the war that began with the Russian military invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio added that "the Russians are finding it increasingly difficult to defend their airspace" and said the US administration hopes the emerging situation "will allow the necessary conditions to be created for them to negotiate an end to this war".
Mr Peskov spoke of "errors of judgement" by the administration in Washington, which appears to believe that "escalation and military pressure will favour a return to the path of a peaceful settlement". "This is a mistaken idea. The worsening of tensions and actions moving in the direction of escalation in no way contribute to any peace process," he said.
Drone campaign and civilian casualties
Ukraine has multiplied its drone raids on Russia in recent months, targeting in particular refineries, oil storage facilities and hydrocarbon cargoes at sea, a campaign that has caused fuel shortages in parts of Russian territory.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the country suffered 38 civilian deaths last week, without giving specific locations or dates. In written statements to the TASS news agency, she referred to "38 people, among them a child" killed and "another 270, among them 8 children" injured.
US efforts to mediate an end to the armed conflict have been effectively suspended since the outbreak of the war in the Middle East on 28 February. Nevertheless, although Mr Trump appeared to renew his support for Ukraine at this week's NATO summit, the Kremlin continues to see in Washington the "will" to "contribute" to the continuation of the "peace process".
