Putin sees "no point" in meeting with Zelenskyy to discuss ending war

World Putin sees "no point" in meeting with Zelenskyy to discuss ending war June 5, 2026 / 2:49 PM EDT / CBS/AP Add CBS News on Google Russian President Vladimir Putin said he sees "no point" in meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in an effort to end the war with Ukraine.On Thursday, Zelenskyy wrote a letter to Putin, the first public message he has sent to the Russian leader since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, in which he criticized Putin's 26 years of rule and said "age is beginning to take its toll."Speaking at the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, Putin described Zelenskyy's open letter proposing the meeting as "boorish.""Is it a way to create conditions for personal meetings and talks, or create an environment which makes any personal meetings impossible?" Putin said at a question-and-answer session at his annual St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. "I think it's the second."Putin added that a Russian businessman whom he didn't identify traveled to Kyiv last month and met with Zelenskyy to hear his offer of a personal meeting.However, Putin said he currently sees "no point" in such a meeting, especially after a May 22 drone attack by Ukraine on a college dormitory in the Russian-controlled Luhansk region that Moscow said killed 21 and wounded scores of others. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy speaks during a joint news conference with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte (not pictured) on June 3, 2026 in Kyiv, Ukraine.  Viktor Kovalchuk/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images In response to Zelenskyy's barbs about his age and long stay in power, the 73-year-old Putin pointed at other global leaders who are older, adding that "the main thing isn't age; the main thing is the ability to work." He also mocked Zelenskyy's rocky Oval Office meeting in 2025 and thanked U.S. President Trump for "educating" Zelenskyy "before the eyes of the whole world" and teaching him a proper dress code."There is still a lot to b...