Ukraine seeks 'peace summit' with Russia, Kremlin says 'never followed conditions set by others'
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has expressed he would want to have a peace summit with Russia, at the United Nations. Russia, however, seems reluctant to hold talks.
In Short
- Ukrainian FM said he would want UN Secretary-General António Guterres as mediator
- The Ukrainian minister said that Ukraine will do whatever it can to win the war in 2023
- Ukrainian FM can only mediate if all parties want him to mediate, the UN said
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has said he wants a summit to end the war with Russia. However, Putin's country does not seem willing to take part.
Talking to the Associated Press, Kuleba said he would want a 'peace summit' between the two countries within two months, at the United Nations with Secretary-General António Guterres as mediator.
Kuleba also said he was “absolutely satisfied” with the results of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to the US last week.
The Ukrainian foreign minister said that Ukraine will do whatever it can to win the war in 2023.
“Every war ends in a diplomatic way,” he said.
“Every war ends as a result of the actions taken on the battlefield and at the negotiating table.”
Kuleba said the Ukrainian government would like to have the “peace” summit by the end of February.
“The United Nations could be the best venue for holding this summit because this is not about making a favor to a certain country,” he said.
“This is really about bringing everyone on board.”
Meanwhile, commenting on Kuleba's plea for a summit, the United Nations on Monday said, “As the secretary-general has said many times in the past, he can only mediate if all parties want him to mediate."
On Russia's proposal for a summit, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia “never followed conditions set by others, only our own and common sense.”
A Kremlin spokesman said last week that no Ukrainian peace plan can succeed without taking into account “the realities of today that can’t be ignored” — a reference to Moscow’s demand that Ukraine recognises Russia’s sovereignty over the Crimean Peninsula, which was annexed in 2014, as well as other territorial gains.
RUSSIA SHOOTS DOWN UKRAINIAN DRONE NEAR AIRBASE
On Monday, the Russian military said it shot down a Ukrainian drone approaching an air base deep inside Russia, the second time the facility has been targeted this month — again revealing weaknesses in Russia’s air defenses.
Russia’s Defense Ministry said debris killed three servicemen at the Engels air base, which houses Tu-95 and Tu-160 nuclear-capable strategic bomber planes that have struck Ukraine with missiles in the 10-month-old war.
Russia’s Baza news outlet reported that four people were wounded and said a fire had broken out, with explosions, sirens and flashes on a video it posted on its Telegram channel.
The Defense Ministry claimed no Russian aircraft were damaged.
It wasn’t clear whether the drone had been launched from Ukraine or Russian territory.
Russia has suffered numerous cross-border attacks during the war on its main territory, as well as on the Crimean Peninsula, which it illegally annexed in 2014.
The incidents have outraged Russian military bloggers who say they show the country’s weak air defenses and security systems in general.
In another cross-border incident that couldn’t be independently confirmed, Russian media reported Monday that the country’s security forces had killed four Ukrainian saboteurs attempting to enter the Bryansk region from Ukraine.
The report claimed the infiltrators carried explosive materials when they were caught Sunday.
Courtesy: India Today
