Russian President Vladimir Putin told Kyiv on Wednesday there was a chance to end the war in Ukraine via negotiations "if common sense prevails", an option he said he preferred, but that he was ready to end it by force if that was the only way.
Speaking in Beijing at the end of a visit that resulted in an agreement on a new gas pipeline to China, Putin said he perceived "a certain light at the end of the tunnel", given what he said were sincere efforts by the United States to find a settlement to Europe's biggest land war since World War Two.
"It seems to me that if common sense prevails, it will be possible to agree on an acceptable solution to end this conflict. That is my assumption," Putin told reporters.
"Especially since we can see the mood of the current U.S. administration under President (Donald) Trump, and we see not just their statements, but their sincere desire to find this solution... And I think there is a certain light at the end of the tunnel. Let's see how the situation develops," he said.
"If not, then we will have to resolve all the tasks before us by force of arms."
However, Putin indicated no willingness to soften his long-standing demands, including that Kyiv abandon any idea of joining NATO and that it end what Moscow says is discrimination against Russian speakers.
He said he was ready to hold talks with Volodymyr Zelenskiy if the Ukrainian president came to Moscow, but that any such meeting had to be well prepared and lead to tangible results.
Ukraine's foreign minister dismissed as "unacceptable" the suggestion of Moscow as a venue for such a meeting.
Zelenskiy has been pressing to meet Putin to discuss the terms of a possible deal even though the two sides remain far apart. He has urged Washington to impose further sanctions on Russia if Putin does not agree.
Trump - who has been trying to broker a peace settlement - has also said he wants the two leaders to meet and has threatened, but not yet imposed, secondary sanctions on Russia.
Putin, whose economy is showing signs of strain after being hit with sweeping Western sanctions, said he would prefer to end the war diplomatically, "by peaceful means", if possible.
Russia claims to have annexed four Ukrainian regions, a claim Kyiv and most Western countries reject as an illegal land grab backed by a colonial-style war of conquest.
