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Russia Says It Welcomes Trump's Readiness to Solve Problems through Dialogue

File photo: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Moscow, Russia December 7, 2023. Sergei Bobylev, Reuters via Sputnik
File photo: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Moscow, Russia December 7, 2023. Sergei Bobylev, Reuters via Sputnik
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Russia Says It Welcomes Trump's Readiness to Solve Problems through Dialogue

File photo: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Moscow, Russia December 7, 2023. Sergei Bobylev, Reuters via Sputnik
File photo: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi in Moscow, Russia December 7, 2023. Sergei Bobylev, Reuters via Sputnik

Russia welcomes the stated willingness of US President-elect Donald Trump to resolve problems through dialogue, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Friday, reaffirming Russian President Vladimir Putin's readiness for talks with Trump.
There may be progress on setting up a meeting between Trump and Putin after Trump is sworn in on Jan. 20, Peskov told reporters. Trump said on Thursday a meeting was being set up between him and Putin, but offered no timeline.
Trump said repeatedly during his election campaign that he could end the Russia-Ukraine war within 24 hours, but he and advisers have suggested more recently that it could be resolved within months of him taking office.
His impending return to the White House has sparked hope of a diplomatic resolution, but it has also led to fears in Kyiv that a quick peace deal could come at a high price for Ukraine.
Peskov said Putin had repeatedly stated his willingness to hold talks with international leaders, including Trump.
"No conditions are required for this, (only) a mutual desire and political will to conduct a dialogue and resolve existing problems through dialogue is required," he said.
"We see that Mr. Trump also declares his readiness to resolve problems through dialogue, we welcome this."
Peskov said there were no specific plans for a meeting yet, but that Russia was working on the assumption that both sides were open to it. "Apparently, after Mr. Trump enters the Oval Office, there will be some movement."
Trump said on Thursday: "President Putin wants to meet. He has said that even publicly and we have to get that war over with. That's a bloody mess."
Advisers to Trump have floated proposals to end the war that would effectively cede large parts of the country to Russia for the foreseeable future.
Peskov said Russia's position was consistent as laid out by Putin last June. Putin said then that Russia was willing to end the war if Ukraine renounced its NATO membership ambitions and withdrew entirely from four regions that Russia partly controls and has claimed as its own.
Kyiv rejected that as tantamount to surrender.
While speaking positively of Trump, Peskov was highly critical of outgoing President Joe Biden.
He said the Biden administration, in its final 10 days, "intends to continue doing everything to continue the war", including possible new sanctions against Russia.
"We are aware that the administration will certainly try to leave the most burdensome legacy in terms of bilateral relations for the incoming Trump and his associates," said Peskov.

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World

Pakistan and Afghanistan Announce Eid ‘Pause’ in Hostilities

A part of a drug rehabilitation center destroyed in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike burns, in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 18, 2026. (Reuters)
A part of a drug rehabilitation center destroyed in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike burns, in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 18, 2026. (Reuters)
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Pakistan and Afghanistan Announce Eid ‘Pause’ in Hostilities

A part of a drug rehabilitation center destroyed in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike burns, in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 18, 2026. (Reuters)
A part of a drug rehabilitation center destroyed in what the Taliban said was a Pakistani air strike burns, in Kabul, Afghanistan, March 18, 2026. (Reuters)

Pakistan and Afghanistan on Wednesday announced a halt in fighting during celebrations for the end of Ramadan, after the deadliest strike in their escalating conflict killed hundreds in Kabul earlier this week.

The governments in Islamabad and Kabul said in separate statements that Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Türkiye had requested a pause in fighting over Eid al-Fitr and both agreed.

Cross-border attacks have intensified since last month and Pakistan accuses the Taliban authorities of shielding extremists behind attacks on its territory. Afghanistan denies doing so.

On Monday night, Pakistani jets struck a drug rehabilitation center in the Afghan capital, prompting fresh calls for an immediate end to attacks and talks to end the bloodshed.

Pakistan's information minister, Attaullah Tarar, said the government agreed to a halt to its operations from Thursday to Monday "in good faith and in keeping with the Islamic norms".

Taliban government spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said defending Afghanistan was "a national and religious obligation" and they would respond to any aggression or threat.

Tarar said: "In case of any cross-border attack, drone attack or any terrorist incident inside Pakistan, (operations) shall immediately resume with renewed intensity."

- Mass funeral -

The Taliban authorities have said that around 400 people were killed and more than 200 wounded in Monday's strike and a mass funeral was held for some of the victims on Wednesday.

Afghan Red Crescent Society volunteers carried dozens of simple wooden coffins from a fleet of ambulances to a mass grave in Kabul, dug in the rocky ground of a rainswept hillside by giant excavators.

At the graveside, Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani said they were innocent victims targeted by "criminals", days before the end of the Muslim holy month.

"We will take revenge," he added and warned those behind Monday night's bombing: "We are not weak and helpless. You will see the consequences of your crimes."

But Haqqani, who until last year had a $10-million US bounty on his head, also suggested that talks were the government's preferred option to halt the fighting.

"We do not want war but the situation has come to this," he said. "So, we are trying to solve the problems through diplomacy."

Interior ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani said the ceremony was for identified victims. Some had been sent back to their home provinces for burial.

Identification of other victims was still ongoing, he added.

Health ministry spokesperson Sharafat Zaman told AFP that 50 coffins had been brought to the Kabul site on Wednesday.

- Identification -

Obtaining immediate independent confirmation of exact death tolls is difficult in Afghanistan and Pakistan, with attacks often in hard-to-reach places and with conflicting information.

AFP journalists at the scene on Monday evening and Tuesday morning saw at least 95 bodies extracted from the rubble at the devastated center.

Jacopo Caridi, the Afghanistan country director for the Norwegian Refugee Council, a humanitarian NGO, said they also had teams on the ground.

"From what we saw and what we discussed with the others involved in the (emergency) response, we can say that there were hundreds of killed and wounded," he told AFP.

Recovery of bodies has proven difficult because of the debris and collapsed structures, and Caridi described the scene as "shocking", which would make identification more difficult.

"I saw a finger in one place, a foot in another place, a hand in one location. It was really horrific," said Caridi.

- Mediation stalled -

Afghanistan and Pakistan have faced calls for an immediate end to the conflict, with the overall civilian death toll mounting and concern about those displaced.

The UN said before Monday's strike that at least 76 Afghan civilians had been killed in the fighting since February 26, and that more than 115,000 people had been forced from their homes.

Mediation efforts, however, have so far proved fruitless.

China has sent a special envoy to mediate and pledged to play a "constructive role in de-escalating tensions".

Russia's special representative for Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, said Moscow "will be ready" to help broker talks if both sides request it.

"So far, this has not happened," he told pro-Kremlin outlet Izvestia.

World

NATO Allies in Talks on 'Best Way' to Re-open Hormuz Strait

FILE PHOTO: A map showing the Strait of Hormuz is seen in this illustration taken June 22, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A map showing the Strait of Hormuz is seen in this illustration taken June 22, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo/File Photo
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NATO Allies in Talks on 'Best Way' to Re-open Hormuz Strait

FILE PHOTO: A map showing the Strait of Hormuz is seen in this illustration taken June 22, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A map showing the Strait of Hormuz is seen in this illustration taken June 22, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo/File Photo

NATO chief Mark Rutte said Wednesday that allies of the military alliance were in discussions on the "best way" to open the Strait of Hormuz, through which a large chunk of the world's oil supply normally passes, AFP reported.

"I have been in contact with many allies. We all agree, of course, that strait has to open up again. And what I know is that allies are working together, discussing how to do that, what is the best way to do it," Rutte told a news conference during a visit to a NATO exercise in northern Norway.

US President Donald Trump has urged other global powers to send warships to escort convoys of tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for the world's oil and liquefied natural gas supplies.

World

Iran President Confirms 'Assassination' of Intelligence Minister

US and Iran flags are seen in this illustration taken June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
US and Iran flags are seen in this illustration taken June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
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Iran President Confirms 'Assassination' of Intelligence Minister

US and Iran flags are seen in this illustration taken June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
US and Iran flags are seen in this illustration taken June 18, 2025. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian confirmed on Wednesday that Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib had been killed in the war with the US and Israel, blasting a "cowardly assassination".

In a post on X, Pezeshkian did not say who had carried out the attack but earlier Israel's defence minister announced that Khatib had been "eliminated, AFP reported.

"The cowardly assassination of my dear colleagues Esmail Khatib, Ali Larijani and Aziz Nasirzadeh, along with some of their family members and accompanying team, has left us in mourning," he said, referring to Iran's recently killed security chief and defense minister.

Israel’s defense minister said Wednesday that the military killed Iranian Intelligence Minister Esmail Khatib. Khatib’s killing follows Israel killing top Iranian security official Ali Larijani and the head of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard’s all-volunteer Basij force.

Also on Wednesday, Iran launched strikes toward Israel and neighboring Gulf countries, with explosions heard in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar and interceptions reported in Saudi Arabia.