Putin: We are ready for negotiations with Ukraine

Kiev should be “returned to the negotiating table”, Putin said, reports The Guardian.

“We are open for this and have stated it often”, he said.

But Ukrainian authorities should respect the expression of the will of the people”, Putin says, referring to the false referenda held in Ukrainian territories last week.

“We will defend our land using all our forces and do everything to ensure people's safety”, the Russian president said.

President Vladimir Putin has declared there are four new regions of Russia, after announcing the official annexation of the Kherson, Zaporizija, Donetsk and Luhansk regions of Ukraine.