The headquarters of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is reflected in the window of a Moscow store.
Moscow – The Russian Foreign Ministry said today that it supports a plan presented by China to end the war in Ukraine. According to Moscow, Kyiv should come to terms with the “new territorial reality”. Russian diplomacy identified Ukraine's reluctance to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin as the main obstacle to achieving peace.
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China today called for a cease-fire between Russia and Ukraine and the start of peace talks, presenting a 12-point plan to end the war in a document titled China's Position on the Political Settlement of the Ukraine Crisis. Among other things, it encourages both countries to refrain from attacks on the civilian population, calls for the establishment of humanitarian corridors, but also for the end of Western sanctions against Russia. At the same time, it subscribed to the principle of “sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries”.
Kyiv rejected the proposal unless it included the withdrawal of Russian troops to the 1991 borders, but at the same time said it was open to negotiations on some parts of the plan.
“We appreciate the sincere wish of our Chinese friends to contribute to the resolution of the conflict in Ukraine by peaceful means. We share Beijing's views,” the Russian ministry said in a statement. It added that this presupposes the recognition of the “new territorial reality” in Ukraine, which arose “as a result of the realization of the right of peoples to self-determination”.
Under the pretext of the “liberation” of the Russian-speaking population of Ukraine, the “denazification” and “demilitarization” of the country, and the “military threat” from Ukraine, Russia unleashed the largest armed conflict in Europe since the end of World War II exactly one year ago, which claimed tens of thousands of lives and millions of people expelled from their homes.
The Ministry mentioned as other Russian demands the cessation of Western arms deliveries to Ukraine, the end of hostilities, the return of Ukraine to neutrality, the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine, and the elimination of all threats coming from its territory. It described as illegitimate the sanctions imposed on Russia by the West in response to its actions in Ukraine.
The ministry identified Ukraine's commitment not to deal with Russian President Putin as the main obstacle to achieving peace. “It shows Kiev's complete detachment from the current reality, including the demand to withdraw Russian troops from our new territories – Donbass, Crimea, Zaporozhye and Kherson regions,” the statement said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last September announced that Kiev will not negotiate with Russia as long as Putin is its president. He wants to act only with the new head of state. He did so in response to Putin announcing the annexation of four Ukrainian regions occupied by Moscow.
