Ukraine raised the conditions for negotiations on Crimea and Donbass with Russia

Mikhail Podolyak, the head of Kiev’s peace negotiator, said the Ukrainian leader would sit at the negotiating table after receiving security guarantees. The Ukrainian negotiator believes these issues can be resolved at a future meeting between the two presidents.

Earlier, President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the negotiation process between the two countries was having problems. According to him, the first step for the two sides to find a common solution is to provide security guarantees and end the conflict. Zelensky plans to discuss these concerns during his first meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Meanwhile, the Russian daily Nezavisimaya Gazeta quoted experts as saying that at the moment, the Russian government will only provide security guarantees if Kiev meets the requirements set by Moscow.

Speaking to the Nezavisimaya Gazeta, a leading expert at the Russian Institute of Strategic Studies Oleg Nemensky commented that by emphasizing the issue of ensuring security, Kiev is really trying to seize the opportunity to defuse the conflict. Moreover, to date, the actions of the Western partners have shown that they will continue to supply arms to the Ukrainians, but do not play a role in ensuring Ukraine’s security.

On March 22, Ukrainian President Zelensky said that the results of the negotiations between his country and Russia will be decided by the public through a national referendum, especially on issues related to security assurance, regulations with the Russian Federation. the Donetsk and Luhansk territories in the Donbass, as well as the issue of the Crimean peninsula.

Mr. Nemensky commented that the idea of ​​​​the Ukrainian government to hold a referendum in a war-torn region with a dispersed and panic population would be futile, and even hinder the progress of peace negotiations. jar.