Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on 21 August that President Vladimir Putin remains willing to meet Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy, but only after officials from both sides "work out all issues that require discussion at the highest level." Lavrov told reporters that experts and ministers must first prepare detailed recommendations before any summit can be scheduled. Lavrov added that Moscow still questions the “legitimacy of the person” who would sign any future agreements on behalf of Kyiv, an allusion to Putin’s long-standing claim that Zelenskyy’s mandate lapsed in May 2024 when wartime conditions postponed Ukrainian elections. Russia fears a subsequent Ukrainian leader could repudiate a deal signed by Zelenskyy unless the matter is settled in advance. The remarks were issued as Washington pursues separate talks aimed at easing the 18-month war, and after U.S. President Donald Trump said he hoped to convene a trilateral meeting with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders. European governments are also debating possible security guarantees for Kyiv, but Lavrov indicated that no Putin-Zelenskyy meeting will take place until Moscow’s procedural and political concerns are addressed.