Russian President Vladimir Putin, at a meeting with top diplomats in the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Moscow, said that Russia is ready to start negotiations with Ukraine at any time, but under one condition.
Putin has said that Russia will cease fire and enter into peace talks if Ukraine abandons its NATO ambitions and withdraws its forces from four Ukrainian regions it claims are claimed by Moscow.
“Ukrainian troops must be fully withdrawn from the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, and the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions – especially from the entire territory of these regions within their administrative borders as they existed when they joined Ukraine. After Kiev announces its readiness to do so and begins the actual withdrawal of troops from these regions, as well as the formal abandonment of plans to join NATO, we will immediately cease fire and start negotiations,” Putin said.
Putin emphasized that Russia is ready to enter into negotiations with Ukraine as soon as possible, acknowledging the complexity of the situation in which it is involved.
He added that Russia is ready to guarantee the safe withdrawal of Ukrainian units in order for this to happen.
“We are ready to sit down at the negotiating table tomorrow, fully aware of the unique legal circumstances. Despite them, there are legitimate authorities, even according to their constitution, with whom we can negotiate,” Putin said.
He added that Volodymyr Zelensky’s presidential mandate has ended, and his legitimacy cannot be restored in any way.
“The presidential mandate of the previously elected head of Ukraine has expired, along with his legitimacy, which cannot be returned by any tricks,” the Russian president pointed out.
According to Putin, the Verkhovna Rada (Ukraine’s parliament) remains the legitimate government, unlike Ukraine’s executive branch. He added that the cancellation of the election reflects the nature of the current government in Kyiv.
“The situation with the cancellation of the elections is a reflection of the very nature of the Kiev regime, which has its roots in the armed coup of 2014 and is intertwined with it. The fact that the cancellation of the elections continues to cling to the authorities – these actions are prohibited by Article 5 of the Ukrainian Constitution, Putin said.
He believes that there is an attempt to usurp power in Ukraine.
“The current tragic chapter in the history of Ukraine began with a violent seizure of power, an unconstitutional coup d’état in 2014. The source of the current Kiev regime is an armed coup, and now the circle has closed: the executive power in Ukraine is again, as in 2014, usurped and held illegally” , Putin believes, Klix.ba writes.
Photo: AP/Archive
