"Kremlin Denies Putin's Backchannel Signals for Ukraine Peace Talks"

The Kremlin denies reports that President Putin is testing the United States' willingness to engage in talks to end the war in Ukraine, despite a Bloomberg report claiming otherwise. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated that the information is false, but also mentioned that Putin is open to negotiations on Ukraine. Ukrainian President Zelensky rejects Moscow's territorial claims and calls for a full withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine, while U.S. media outlets have suggested that Putin may be signaling an openness to a ceasefire deal.