"For lasting peace, new territorial realities must be recognized and formalized under international law," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in an interview published today. "New security arrangements for Russia and Ukraine must be established, becoming a core element of an intercontinental architecture of equal and indivisible security in the Euro-Asian region."
Regarding Russia's opposition to Ukraine joining NATO, Lavrov stressed that "Ukraine needs to maintain a neutral, non-nuclear, and non-aligned status."
He also said that the heads of the Russian and Ukrainian negotiating delegations have been in direct contact. "We hope the negotiations will continue," the Russian foreign minister added.
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Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at a press conference in Moscow on 21/8. Photo: AFP |
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at a press conference in Moscow on 21/8. Photo: AFP
Russia currently controls nearly 20% of Ukrainian territory, including the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014, along with the entire Luhansk province and most of the areas in three provinces: Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, and Kherson. President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that Russia is ready to negotiate an end to the conflict, but will not relinquish the annexed territories.
Former US President Donald Trump suggested the possibility of a "territorial exchange" between Russia and Ukraine to reach a ceasefire agreement. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected this possibility.
Ukraine has also declared that Russia has no authority to decide whether Kyiv can join NATO, while NATO has also stated that Moscow has no right to veto membership in the alliance.
Speaking at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in China on 1/9, President Putin accused the West of trying to bring Ukraine into its orbit before seeking to draw Kyiv into NATO.
Russia and Ukraine have held three rounds of talks in Istanbul, Turkey since the beginning of the year, with the most recent taking place on 23/7, after more than three years without direct dialogue. However, the two sides have only reached agreements on humanitarian issues and have not made a breakthrough towards peace.
Former US President Donald Trump on 2/9 expressed "great disappointment" that President Putin had not reached a peace agreement with Ukraine. President Zelensky accused Russia of doing everything possible to obstruct the summit between the leaders of the two countries, while Moscow said the agenda for such a meeting was not yet ready.
Huyen Le (Reuters)
