The Russian president, Vladimir Putinsaid this Friday that he will negotiate with Ukraine if it withdraws its troops from the four regions that Moscow claims and if kyiv renounces joining NATOwhile dismissing the peace summit organized in Switzerland to which Russia was not invited.
“As soon as kyiv (…) begins the effective withdrawal of troops (from the regions of Donetsk, Lugansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia), and as soon as he notifies that he abandons his plans to join NATO, we will immediately, this very minute, give the ceasefire order and begin negotiations,” Putin told Russian Foreign Ministry officials.
These demands constitute a de facto request for Ukraine’s surrender, the objective of which is to maintain its territorial integrity and sovereignty. Putin proclaimed in September 2022 the annexation of the four regions of eastern and southern Ukraine, in addition to Crimea in 2014.
The Russian president insisted that Ukraine must hand over all of these territories to Russia, even though Moscow only partially occupies them. Likewiseand denigrated the peace summitfrom which Russia was excluded, which is celebrated in Switzerland on June 15 and 16 at the initiative of Ukraine.
It is a “ploy to divert the attention of the entire world” from those truly responsible for the conflict who are, according to him, the Western countries and the authorities in kyiv.
“In this regard, I want to emphasize that without the participation of Russia and without honest dialogue and responsible with us, it is impossible to achieve a peaceful solution in Ukraine and for the security of Europe in general,” the president stressed.
Ukraine will have support from the G7
The leaders of G7 committed this Friday to support Ukraine “as long as necessary,” according to a draft final declaration of the summit, which is being held in Italy.
“We stand in solidarity to support Ukraine’s fight for freedom and its reconstruction for as long as necessary,” says the draft that AFP was able to consult. In the group are powerful countries such as the United States, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Italy and Canada.
On Thursday, at the start of their annual summit, this time in Italy, the seven most prosperous democracies in the world reaffirmed their support for Ukraine with the announcement of a loan of 50 billion dollars.
In parallel, the president of the United States, Joe Bidenhe announced together with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky a security agreement for the next ten years, a “powerful signal” of its long-term support against the Russian invasion that began in February 2022.
