SCOTT DETROW, HOST:
Russian President Vladimir Putin has ruled out direct talks with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying he sees, quote, "no point" in a face-to-face meeting. Zelenskyy had sent Putin a letter proposing a meeting in a third country as part of efforts to end the war. Speaking at Russia's annual economic forum in St. Petersburg, Putin also insisted Moscow would achieve its goals in Ukraine. NPR's Charles Maynes is there. Charles, Putin's speech - really the marquee event of the week. What stuck out to you?
CHARLES MAYNES, BYLINE: Yeah, Scott, you know, he just really gave no hint of any setbacks or compromise when it came to ending this war in Ukraine. Putin was asked about this letter from Zelenskyy you mentioned calling for direct peace talks, and his answer really was, this was a waste of time. He noted the mocking tone of Zelenskyy's letter, which, in fact, did make digs at Putin's age - which, by the way, is 73. Putin also suggested that Zelenskyy - whom he called the author of the letter rather than by name - was using this offer for talks to stall Russian progress on the battlefield and rearm. And Putin accused Zelenskyy of carrying out an attack on civilians before addressing his own soldiers in Ukraine. Let's listen.
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PRESIDENT VLADIMIR PUTIN: (Speaking Russian).
MAYNES: Adding, "get to work, my brothers," a line that was met by - with applause by the audience.
DETROW: I mean, Putin sounds confident, but how does that square with the facts on the ground?
MAYNES: Well, a lot of people would say it doesn't. You know, Ukrainian drones continue to strike deep into Russia, including in St. Petersburg as this economic forum was getting underway. That was on Wednesday. We've seen Russian advances on the battlefield - incremental at best. In some cases, Russia has even lost territory of late. So it looks a lot more like an impasse than an impending victory, at least as things stand right now. At the forum, I had a chance to speak with Fyodor Lukyanov. He's the editor of Russia In Global Affairs magazine, who argued that the current quagmire, in fact, marked a more dangerous moment.
FYODOR LUKYANOV: We see that on the level of diplomatic solutions, there is not a big chance that either country will change its position. So I would suggest, unfortunately, that we might face an attempt to escalate military activities to change this situation.
MAYNES: So in other words, Scott, Lukyanov is suggesting the Kremlin might deploy even more powerful weapons to assuage any doubts at home in Russia as to who in fact is winning this war.
DETROW: One other interesting thing happening - Rodney Cook, who is a White House official, the Commissioner of Fine Arts, the person in charge of President Trump's ballroom project - he was there. What can you tell us about what he was up to?
MAYNES: Yeah, you know, I attended a presentation by Cook on Thursday where he really spoke to his deep love of Russian culture and his Russian Orthodox faith. This was a round table, which was really focused on how cultural diplomacy might help repair U.S.-Russian relations. But beyond that, you know, it didn't seem like Cook had much of a mandate, and yet he was given a chance to address Putin during this plenary session today.
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RODNEY COOK: I do give a good hello from your friend President Trump, and I am encouraged by everything that has happened since I've been here, Mr. President.
MAYNES: You know, Cook said there were a lot of ideas for the two sides to discuss going forward.
DETROW: And, Charles, real quick, this is an economic forum. Can the Russian economy sustain this war effort?
MAYNES: Yeah, there are a lot of signs of trouble in the Russian economy, with some predicting a recession, but you wouldn't know it by Putin's comments today. He basically brushed off the doubters and vowed his team would get things back on track.
DETROW: NPR's Charles Maynes in St. Petersburg. Thanks so much.
MAYNES: Thank you, Scott.
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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