Russian President Vladimir Putin has broken his silence on a U.S.-backed peace plan to end the war in Ukraine, saying Moscow is ready for “serious” discussions about the draft proposals. Putin said Thursday that the outlines of a draft peace plan that has been reached by the U.S. and Ukraine could be the basis of a deal that ends the almost four-year long conflict. “In general, we agree that this can be the basis for future agreements,” Putin said in comments made during a trip to Kyrgyzstan and translated by Reuters. The president added that the U.S. appeared to be taking Russia’s position on a peace settlement ... (full story)