Russia denies stalling peace talks, says no decision yet on venue

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia on Wednesday rejected Ukrainian and European accusations it was trying to drag out the peace process around Ukraine, but said that no decision had yet been made on a venue for talks when asked if they could be hosted by the Vatican.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday "it would be great" for Russia and Ukraine to hold ceasefire talks at the Vatican, saying it would add extra significance to the proceedings.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Tuesday that Pope Leo had confirmed to her that he was willing to host the next round of negotiations.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia welcomed "the readiness and efforts of all parties who want to contribute to a speedy settlement", but nothing had been decided yet about where the next meeting should be held.

Moscow had not received any specific proposals from the Vatican, he said.

The warring sides met in Istanbul last week for their first face-to-face negotiations since March 2022 and agreed a swap of 1,000 prisoners on each side, but Russia did not agree to an immediate, unconditional ceasefire that Ukraine was seeking.

President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone to Trump on Monday and said Russia and Ukraine would work on a memorandum relating to a peace accord, prompting new accusations from Kyiv and European governments that Moscow was stalling and had no serious interest in peace.

Peskov rejected that. "Nobody is interested in delaying the process. Everyone is working dynamically. We will keep you informed. Of course, most of this work is being done in a discreet mode, and it should not, for obvious reasons, be open to the public," he said.

(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Anastasia Teterevleva and Mark TrevelyanEditing by Andrew Osborn)