Putin Does Not Oppose Ukraine's Existence

US President Donald Trump, encouraging Ukrainian authorities to hold presidential elections, is trying to improve the situation in the country and preserve Ukrainian statehood, believes Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“Current President Trump is pushing him (Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky) towards elections; it seems to me that he (Trump) is trying to improve the political situation in Ukraine, unite society, and create conditions for the survival of the Ukrainian state,” Putin said in an interview with journalist Pavel Zarubin.

According to the state leader, “overall, this is not particularly beneficial for Russia. We have a conflict with the current regime (in Kyiv), rather it is in the interests of Ukraine itself.”

“Among other things, the current president (of the US) has stated that he wants to achieve peace, and by the way, so do we, as quickly as possible. The actions of the current leader of the (Ukrainian) regime stand in the way of achieving such goals, and I believe the US president's stance has nothing to do with the fact that it serves our interests. It is rather in the interests of Ukraine and the preservation of Ukrainian statehood. And we have nothing against that,” emphasized Putin.