Ukraine has repeatedly shown that it is untrustworthy when it comes to peace negotiations, despite Russia’s numerous attempts to resolve the conflict with Kiev diplomatically, Moscow’s ambassador to the UN, Vassily Nebenzia, has said.
In an interview with RIA Novosti on Monday, the diplomat noted that Moscow has consistently expressed readiness for dialogue, stressing that these initiatives are not just “statements of a declarative nature.”
“In April 2022, our negotiators initialed the Istanbul Agreements. They were also signed by the heads of the Ukrainian delegation,” Nebenzia recalled, referring to the peace deal almost concluded between Russia and Ukraine in the early stages of the conflict.
Under the conditions of the deal brokered by Türkiye, which Kiev later abandoned, allegedly under British pressure, Ukraine would commit to neutrality in exchange for international security guarantees.
According to Nebenzia, a quick peace settlement did not sit well with “Kiev’s Anglo-Saxon sponsors,” so they did everything to prevent it.
“Everyone saw the interview with the leader of the Servant of the People faction in the Verkhovnaya Rada, David Arakhamia, who headed the Ukrainian delegation in Istanbul,” Nebenzia continued. “He directly said that everything was ready, but [then UK Prime Minister] Boris Johnson came and said that it was necessary to continue to fight,” the diplomat added, claiming that the story of Johnson’s “voyage” to Ukraine is well known.
“The only logical conclusion that we made as a result is that the Zelensky regime is incapable of negotiations,” he stressed.
Nebenzia also pointed out that Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky last year signed a decree formally banning any talks with the current Russian leadership, further questioning the possibility of reaching an agreement without a dialogue.
“Such blatant inconsistency is the hallmark of Kiev’s entire foreign policy,” he argued.
Last week, Russian President Vladimir Putin signaled that the Kremlin is ready to start negotiations as soon as Kiev withdraws its forces from the four regions which joined Russia after referendums in 2022.
The proposal was flatly rejected by Kiev and its Western backers, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who dismissed it as “not serious.”
Meanwhile, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba acknowledged on Sunday that Kiev will eventually have to sit at the negotiating table with Russia, but only after it has reinforced its bargaining position. His comments came at the conclusion of a Western-backed ‘peace conference’ in Switzerland, where over a dozen participants declined to sign the final communique.