“Otherwise, nothing,” says Ukrainian presidential adviser.
QUICK FACTS:
- The immediate ceasefire and the withdrawal of Russian troops from the territories of Ukraine are among the key aspects of a peace agreement that could be signed following negotiations with Russia to end the war against Ukraine, Ukrainian news outlet Interfax reports.
- “The immediate ceasefire and the immediate withdrawal of Russian troops from the territories of Ukraine are one of the key aspects of the peace agreement. Otherwise, nothing,” Adviser to the President’s Office Mykhailo Podoliak said in an interview with WP Wiadomości.
- “However, negotiations are a large-scale process in which not only Russia and Ukraine take part. Our partners are also involved. After all, we do not just have to sign an agreement. We want to develop a specific mechanism that will guarantee our security in the future,” he stressed.
- Podoliak stressed that both Ukrainian and Russian delegations are defending their positions at the talks, meaning it may take time to agree on the controversial issues.
WHAT ELSE UKRAINE SAID:
- “During this time, we should get closer to concluding a peace agreement. First of all, taking into account the interests of Ukraine, which suffered huge destruction from the Russian Federation,” said Podoliak.
- “In addition, it is foreign states that will guarantee the fulfillment of the conditions and the security of Ukraine in the future. This will be a document detailing the procedure for actions in the event of repeated aggression from Russia. This is an innovative formula, authored by President Volodymyr Zelensky, which can become the basis for creating a completely new security system in Europe,” he said.
- “We are not Russia. We know how and we will conduct a dialogue with our society. And we always hear our society. Unlike the Russian Federation, we can discuss any issues that we should have been talking about for a long time, but we will not agree to a single ultimatum.”
BACKGROUND:
- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy could meet Russian President Vladimir Putin “in the coming weeks,” Zelensky’s aide, Mikhail Podolyak, said on Thursday, RT News reports.
- The meeting, however, could happen only when a “peace treaty” between Kyiv and Moscow is signed, he said.
- “As soon as the work on the agreement is completed, we will start organizing the meeting. It will happen in the coming weeks. The location, however, does not matter to us. It can be anywhere, except for Russia,” Podolyak told Wirtualna Polska portal in an interview.
