As part of the peace talks, Zelensky wants to “thoroughly” examine Russian demands. Donbass is also on the table.
Ukraine and Russia want to start a new round of talks in Istanbul on Monday or Tuesday. It should also be about the Donbass region and Ukraine’s future neutrality. “This point of the negotiations is understandable to me and it is being discussed, it is being scrutinized,” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview with several Russian media outlets.
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Ukraine’s neutrality is one of the main Russian demands in the ceasefire negotiations. The Kremlin recently cited the model of Sweden or Austria as a possible model. With such a model of neutrality, Ukraine would have to refrain from joining NATO, which Zelenskiy has already promised.
President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky.HANDOUT / AFP / picturedesk.com
However, the Ukrainian president warned against a deal “in the style of the Budapest Memoranda”. In 1994, Russia and three other former Soviet republics, including Ukraine, agreed to hand over Soviet nuclear weapons to Russia on the condition of security guarantees. Furthermore, a new agreement between the warring parties “must be ratified by the parliaments of the guarantor states”, demanded Zelensky, who also confirmed his intention to hold a referendum on a peace agreement.
“The Reconquista would trigger the Third World War”
The Ukrainian leader also said a victory for Ukraine would be if Russian troops “push” into areas controlled by pro-Russian separatists in the east. “From there, we will try to solve the Donbass problem,” Zelensky said. Apparently, the leadership in Kiev has already cleared this corner of the country. Zelensky: “We understand that it is impossible to completely clear the area.” The reconquest of the territories would trigger the “Third World War”. According to the head of state, about 20,000 people have died in the war.
New negotiations in Turkey
Meanwhile, the warring parties agreed in their videoconference talks “to hold the next round in Turkey from March 28 to 30,” Ukrainian negotiator David Arachamia said. Russian chief negotiator Vladimir Medinski confirmed a new round of talks, but spoke of Tuesday and Wednesday.
According to Turkish information, negotiations should take place in Istanbul. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to this in a phone call. An exact date was not given. Initial ministerial-level talks on March 10 in Antalya, Turkey, did not bring any concrete progress towards a ceasefire in Ukraine. Since then, conversations have continued via videoconference. Both parties to the conflict recently described it as “difficult”.
20 minutes time of the navigation account28.03.2022, 13:29 | Act: 03/28/2022, 1:54 pm