"A Real Peace Offer"? Vladimir Putin outlined Ukraine's demands for ending the war at a meeting with Foreign Ministry officials.
🔸“Today we are making another concrete, real peace proposal [to Kyiv]”" ," Putin said. He said it does not entail freezing the conflict through a temporary ceasefire or ceasefire, but rather its "final conclusion."
🔸Putin's position is "neutral, non-aligned, non-nuclear status" Ukraine, its demilitarization and denazification." He also wants to completely seize five regions from Ukraine, including Crimea. Ukraine must officially announce its abandonment of plans to join NATO, and Western sanctions against Russia must be lifted.
🔸Putin also stated that he did not intend to seize Kiev two years ago: "At the beginning of the military operation in Ukraine, the Russian army was stationed near Kyiv, but it had no intention of storming the Ukrainian capital. The troops were needed to push the Ukrainian side toward negotiations."
🔸According to Putin, the West was preparing the "Ukrainian crisis," and is now doing everything possible to ensure that the conflict drags on indefinitely and mutually embitters the peoples of Russia and Ukraine.
🔸The Foreign Minister commented on the statement. Sergey LavrovHe said Moscow would await the West's reaction to Putin's new proposals and advised them to "listen," as previous refusals "have never led to anything good." He believed it was incorrect to suggest that Putin's initiative on Ukraine resembles an offer of capitulation.
The war has been going on for more than two years: Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukrainian territory on February 24, 2022.