Moscow, Kremlin – illustration photo
Kyiv/Moscow – In a televised interview today, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Vershinin invited Ukraine to peace negotiations, but without any conditions and “on the basis of the reality that exists”. The adviser to the head of the Ukrainian presidential office, Mykhaylo Podoljak, immediately called the offer another proof that negotiations are now meaningless, that Russia does not intend to give up the occupied Ukrainian territories and that only Ukraine's victory in the war will ensure peace in Europe.
Advertisement'; }
“Yes, the classic says that any war action ends in negotiations, and naturally we have already said that we will be willing to have such talks. But only to talks without preconditions (and) based on the reality that exists, to talks taking into account the goals we have publicly announced,” the Russian diplomat said.
According to Podoljak, such a statement only proves that negotiations with the Kremlin are out of the question. “In its regular rhetoric about peace and negotiations, the Kremlin declares that it will not leave the (occupied) Ukrainian territories and will not take responsibility for its crimes. This is further proof that negotiations are out of the question. Only a victory for Ukraine, or the war in Europe will not end and Russia will criminally will take over the world,” wrote Podoljak on Twitter.
The invasion of Ukraine by Russian troops on the orders of President Vladimir Putin 353 days ago unleashed the largest land conflict in Europe since the end of World War II, which has claimed tens of thousands of lives and displaced millions of people. Russia tried to annex four more Ukrainian regions, similar to Crimea, but the world does not recognize these annexations and Ukrainian troops liberated part of the occupied territories during their counter-offensive.
The draft resolution submitted to the UN General Assembly by supporters of Ukraine on the eve of the Russian invasion, emphasizes the necessity to reach a peace that would ensure the “sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity” of Ukraine, writes the Russian editors of the BBC. The UN Security Council negotiations on Ukraine should continue on February 22, and the following day a vote should be taken on the proposal, which, according to diplomats, was received by all member states except Russia and Belarus. The document also calls for the immediate and complete withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory within internationally recognized borders, a full exchange of prisoners, the release of all illegally imprisoned persons, and the return of forcibly deported persons to their homeland.
