MOSCOW, October 15. /TASS/. The possibility of a conversation between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump, the pause in negotiations with Ukraine and the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ruling on Georgia’s lawsuit against Russia were the main topics of Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov’s October 15 briefing
TASS has compiled the main points from the spokesman’s statements.
On Putin’s schedule
- President Vladimir Putin will discuss Russian military bases located in Syria during talks with the republic’s interim leader Ahmed al-Sharaa: "It is obvious that [the topic] will be raised during the conversation in one way or another. Yes, you can expect that."
- No press conference following their meeting has been scheduled.
- Russian President Vladimir Putin will definitely meet with the participants of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine who handed over to him icons with bullet marks: "When the president’s schedule allows, when he makes a decision, he announced himself that he will definitely hold such a meeting. I don’t know as to whether the President wants it to be a public event."
On potential Putin-Trump conversation
- It is unclear whether the phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his US counterpart Donald Trump will take place in the coming days: "No, it is yet unclear."
- Moscow has not received greetings from US leader Donald Trump on the birthday of Russian President Vladimir Putin who turned 73 on October 7: "No, there have not been any [birthday greetings from Trump]."
- Moscow is grateful to Washington for its readiness to continue contributing to the peaceful settlement of the Ukrainian conflict: ""We are grateful to the US side for its repeatedly voiced at various level readiness to continue contributing to the peaceful settlement."
On Ukraine talks halt
- Russia remains open to negotiations on Ukraine, but the current pause in dialogue is the fault of the Europeans and Kiev, whom they are encouraging: "The problem is that Europeans are daily provoking the Kiev regime to continue the war. Under these circumstances, we see no alternative to the current pause."
On ECHR’s ruling
- Moscow does not intend to implement the decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) ordering a payment of €253 million to Tbilisi in connection with the 2008 events: "We will not comply with the decision."
On BRICS and US tariffs
- The Kremlin is unaware of the alleged intention of BRICS member states to leave the association due to the threat of US tariffs announced by the country’s leader Donald Trump: "Regarding all countries’ [intention] to leave, honestly, I don’t have such information."
- BRICS member countries have never devised anything against third countries or the currencies of third countries: "It is an association of countries that share a common vision of mutual cooperation for the sake of people in these nations and in the interests of prosperity, stability, and predictability on their continents."
On protecting Russia’s interests
- The special military operation is aimed at protecting Russia’s interests and ensuring the present and future of its citizens: "Everything [President Vladimir Putin] does is intended to safeguard the present and future of our citizens. That is the purpose of the special military operation."
On Russia’s economy
- The Russian economy is strong and allows both the country’s leadership and its citizens to implement all their plans: "Regarding the Russian economy, it has a sufficient and considerable margin of safety to allow the country’s leadership and all of us to implement the plans we have."
On Russian governor’s firing habits
- Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov declined to comment on Samara Region Governor Vyacheslav Fyodorishchev’s abrupt manner of settling personnel issues: "The appointments and layoffs of district heads are the regional head’s prerogative. As for the ethical side of it, I wouldn’t want to comment on this."