Kremlin hopes talks with Ukraine will start imminently, won't comment on their aim

FILE PHOTO: An armoured vehicle is seen as pro-Russian separatists of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic and Russian regular forces enter Mykolaivka amid Russia's invasion of Ukraine, in Donetsk Region, Ukraine February 27, 2022 in this still image taken from video. REUTERS/via REUTERS TV

MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin on Monday said it hoped talks with the Ukrainian side would start imminently, but declined to comment on Moscow's aim in negotiations, as Russian invasion forces seized two small cities in southeastern Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia regretted that talks had not started a day earlier. Russian forces ran into stiff resistance elsewhere in Ukraine as Moscow's diplomatic and economic isolation deepened.