There’s an old saying that goes, “If you dine at the devil’s table, you don’t get to choose the menu.” And yet dining at the devil’s table is precisely what Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky is being offered, in the form of an invitation from Russian President Vladimir Putin to meet to discuss an end to the Russo-Ukrainian War.
The meeting, of course, is to take place in Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday claimed he “never refused” a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and invited him to come to Moscow, according to Russian state-owned news outlet Tass.
“If Zelenskyy is ready for a meeting, let him come to Moscow,” Putin said, according to a translation of the remarks issued from China, where he met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un for a military parade commemorating the 80th anniversary of World War II.
Zelenskyy’s office did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s questions, nor did the White House.
Were I one of President Zelensky’s advisors, this would pretty much be my reaction:
As the old Vulcan proverb goes, only Nixon could go to China – but Volodymyr Zelensky is pretty much the last guy who should ever be going to Moscow. It wouldn’t be at all surprising if he never returned, having suffered some totally unexpected fatal accident, like tripping and falling onto some bullets.
Yes, the two sides need to talk. But having Ukraine’s leader walk into a lion’s den, a den where the lions have nuclear weapons, is a really, really bad idea.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Sybiha took to X and accused Putin of issuing “knowingly unacceptable proposals,” adding that seven nations have made known their readiness to host peace talks, including Austria, Vatican City, Switzerland, Turkey, and three Gulf states.
“These are serious proposals and President Zelenskyy is ready for such a meeting at any point of time. Yet, Putin continues to mess around,” he added. “Only increased pressure can force Russia to finally get serious about peace process.”
Right now, at least seven countries are ready to host a meeting between leaders of Ukraine and Russia to bring an end to the war. Austria, the Holy See, Switzerland, Türkiye, and three Gulf states.
These are serious proposals and President Zelenskyy is ready for such a meeting… pic.twitter.com/b19VquSEFU
— Andrii Sybiha 🇺🇦 (@andrii_sybiha) September 3, 2025
Putin’s invitation to Moscow casts some doubt on how willing he is to make a deal. It beggars belief that Putin, who is nobody’s dummy, thinks that President Zelensky would actually come to Moscow.
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Look at the optics of this from Putin’s side, though. He’s clearly intending to show Ukraine and the Ukrainian president who the bigger fish is. The statement – “We’ll talk, but only if you come to me,” is pretty blatant. We might remember that, in the glad-handing press conference following the Alaska Summit, Putin said in a slightly humorous tone to President Trump, “Next time in Moscow.” But the American president could probably go into that lion’s den and come out unscathed. Ukraine’s president? Not so much.
Any of these talks should be on neutral ground for both warring powers. Little Diomede Island sounds like a good place; it’s remote, peaceful, and if things go sour, all it would take to return Tsar Vladimir I to Russian soil would be a rowboat.
Editor’s Note: Thanks to President Trump and his administration’s bold leadership, we are respected on the world stage, and our enemies are being put on notice.
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