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The Kremlin said Friday that peace talks with Ukraine were on “pause,” as efforts by U.S. President Donald Trump to end the three-and-a-half-year war stall.
“Our negotiators have the opportunity to communicate through channels. But for now, it is probably more accurate to talk about a pause,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in a briefing call.
The comments came as the European Union agreed Friday to prolong sanctions on Russia for another six months, extending measures against more than 2,500 individuals and entities, including President Vladimir Putin.
Ambassadors from the bloc’s 27 member states signed off on the extension ahead of Monday’s deadline, after Hungary and Slovakia dropped demands to remove several names from the blacklist, diplomats said.
“We just extended our sanctions on Russia,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas wrote on X, adding that Brussels was finalizing a new package “looking into additional curbs on Russian oil sales, shadow oil tankers, and banks.”
“We’ll keep choking off the cash for Putin’s war,” she said.
The sanctions, which must be renewed every six months, were due to expire next week if no deal was reached. Extensions have typically been routine, but Hungary has regularly pressed to lift some restrictions.
The extension came as tensions escalated following NATO jets’ downing of Russian drones over EU member Poland this week.
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Poland said Wednesday that its airspace was violated overnight during Russian strikes on Ukraine, calling the incursion an “act of aggression.” Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the drones were Russian, with authorities initially recording 19 violations.
Russia’s Defense Ministry denied any intention to strike Polish territory, saying the attacks targeted Ukraine’s military-industrial sites in the west of the country. Moscow also said it was willing to engage in dialogue with Warsaw over the incident.
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