Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska says Ukraine peace talks might start in September

He talked about this on his Telegram channel.

Deripaska said, "It looks like peace talks about the Ukrainian conflict might begin as early as the end of September."

He believes that the United States leaders will consider economic reasons when deciding on these negotiations. They will have to find a way to “agree with the enemy”. Deripaska thinks that after he said this, people will “forget about Russia for a period.” This could let Russia invest and get better economically. However, according to him, Russia's economy after the conflict will “focus more on the southern and eastern parts.”

• Deripaska was married to Polina Yumasheva for 17 years, and she's the granddaughter of the first president of Russia, Boris Yeltsin. 

• He is close to Roman Abramovich, who is also connected to Yeltsin's family group. Abramovich is involved in informal talks between Ukraine and Russia on specific matters, like the exchange of prisoners. 

• Deripaska is facing sanctions.