From India, Putin warns Europe against sending troops to Ukraine, Zelensky expresses willingness to meet him at G20 Summit

Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is India for BRICS Summit 2026, warned European nations against sending troops to Kyiv, stating that the nation does not threaten European countries. Speaking to reporters in New Delhi on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit, Putin affirmed that sending troops to Ukraine will mean “war with Russia.” On the other side, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that he would be willing to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin at a G20 summit in Miami.

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From India, Putin's warning to European countries came as he said, “There is no such threat, and there has never been. We are not threatening European countries, nor are we going to threaten them. Why would we? No one seems to even consider that we have no grounds for any conflict with Europe. All issues were settled as a result of the Second World War. And what happened later, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, was done with the consent of the Russian Federation as the successor of the Soviet Union. Everything that runs counter to those arrangements runs counter to our interests and does not comply with the fundamental principles of international law and the UN Charter.” “Now they are talking about how they are thinking about bringing troops to the territory of Ukraine. This means war with Russia,” the Russian President added.

The statement came after Putin met Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the second time in less than a fortnight and reviewed bilateral ties and exchanged notes on global and regional issues. The PM “again reiterated that dialogue and diplomacy was the way forward in resolving conflicts and India stood ready to assist in peace efforts”, the external affairs ministry said in a readout on the meeting.

Meanwhile, Zelensky in an interview with broadcaster Deutsche Welle said if he would meet Putin at the G20 gathering in December if both leaders were invited. “Yes, of course. We have to come. We have to meet, to speak, and make decisions. It's not about words. What I will tell him or what he wants to tell me, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. Matters only result. Result matters. That's it.” Zelensky said in the DW interview, which took place Friday, that Witkoff and Kushner's visit was a "good signal", and it was important the pair had visited Kyiv as well as Moscow.