MOSCOW, February 26. /TASS/. Kiev must contain nationalists who are pushing the military toward shelling attacks, if it wants talks with Moscow, Vladislav Deinego, Foreign Minster of the Lugansk People’s Republic (LPR), said on Friday.

"How can they speak about talks and intensify shelling at the same time? If you are ready for talks, contain the nationalists who are pushing the Ukrainian military toward such inadequate actions," he said in an interview with Russia’s TV Channel One.

Ukrainian presidential press secretary Sergey Nikoforov said earlier that President Vladimir Zelensky has accepted Russian President Vladimir Putin’s proposal and is ready to negotiate peace and a ceasefire. He said consultations on the time and venue of the talks are underway.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in a televised address on Thursday morning that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics he had made a decision to carry out a special military operation in order to protect people "who have been suffering from abuse and genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years." The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans of occupying Ukrainian territories.

When clarifying the unfolding developments, the Russian Defense Ministry reassured that Russian troops are not targeting Ukrainian cities, but are limited to surgically striking and incapacitating Ukrainian military infrastructure. There are no threats whatsoever to the civilian population.