MOSCOW, March 3. /TASS/. Russia has reason to believe that Kiev deliberately delays talks, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday.
"We have reason to believe so," he said, when asked if the Kremlin thought that Kiev was stalling for time.
The spokesman said there’re theories about why that might be taking place.
"We wouldn’t like to talk about them," Peskov said. "The obvious fact remains: The Ukrainian side isn’t in a hurry with the talks."
He spotlighted the fact that the Russian delegation had arrived at the venue on Wednesday night. "It waited for the Ukrainian negotiators last night, waited for them during the night and waited for them in the morning," he said. "Truth be told, it still is waiting for them."
The talks haven’t started yet, the spokesman said. "The Ukrainian negotiators are clearly not in a hurry," he said. "Let’s hope they will reach the destination today."
Peskov responded to a question about how Moscow feels about the change of the venue. The venue "is of secondary importance in this case. The main thing is a fact of the meeting," the spokesman said.
Peskov said the meeting would follow the first round of the Russian-Ukrainian talks and Moscow was grateful to Belarus for creating excellent conditions for that initial round.
"We have no doubt that the same conditions will be created this time as well," he said. "But the venue is secondary. There is a possibility of direct, immediate communication, and the main thing is communication and the content of the negotiations."
"But, as we have already said, this shouldn’t be a subject for public discussion," Peskov said.