Russian President Vladimir Putin has stated that he is not prepared to sign a peace treaty with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He reaffirmed his stance that he views Ukraine’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada, as the only legitimate authority.

"You can negotiate with anyone, but due to his illegitimacy, he [Zelensky] has no right to sign anything. If he wants to participate in negotiations, I will appoint people to conduct them," Putin said in an interview with Russia 1 on January 28.

Thus, Putin once again emphasized his belief that Zelensky’s term in office has expired, as Ukraine did not hold elections on time, Echo of the Caucasus reports.

Meanwhile, Putin’s own legitimacy has been questioned by the Russian opposition. In April 2024, the European Parliament called on the EU not to recognize the results of Russia’s presidential elections.

Putin also claimed that if Western countries stopped providing financial and military aid to Ukraine, the conflict would end within two months.

Additionally, he alleged that before the war, Moscow had proposed that Ukrainian forces withdraw from the self-proclaimed DPR and LPR. According to him, had Kyiv agreed, hostilities would not have begun.

He added that in the spring of 2022, he was ready for a personal meeting with Zelensky and had even sent "signals" to then-U.S. President Joe Biden.

Zelensky insists that as elections cannot be held during wartime, he remains Ukraine’s legitimate leader.