Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during a meeting with the leadership of the Russian Foreign Ministry in Moscow, Russia, June 14, 2024. Photo: Sputnik/Alexey Maishev.
Russian President Vladimir Putin detailed a new peace proposal for Ukraine, listing the conditions for starting peace talks.
He declared that the Ukrainian Armed Forces must completely withdraw from the territories of the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Lugansk People’s Republic, and the provinces of Kherson and Zaporozhye that joined Russia through a referendum in September 2022.
“As soon as Kiev declares that it is ready to take this decision to begin the actual withdrawal of troops from these regions and officially abandons its NATO membership plan, we, immediately, at that very minute, will order a ceasefire and start negotiations,” the Russian president said at a meeting with the Russian Foreign Affairs Ministry officials held on Friday, June 14, in Moscow.
He emphasized that the Ukrainian troops must leave the entire territory within the administrative boundaries of the aforementioned regions.
He added that Moscow will ensure the safe passage for the departure of Ukrainian military personnel from the regions.
President Putin also expressed the hope that Ukraine will make a decision on its own “regarding the withdrawal of troops, the status [of Ukraine] outside military blocs, starting a dialogue with Russia, on which the future existence of Ukraine depends.”
“Real peace proposal”
Putin stressed that Moscow is making a “real peace proposal.” If Ukraine and the West reject it, as they have done before, they will bear responsibility for “the bloodshed” that will continue.
He added that the situation on the battlefield will continue to change, and it will not be in Ukraine’s favor. Then, “the conditions for negotiations will be different.”
“The essence of our proposal is not some kind of temporary truce or ceasefire, as the West wants to recover from losses and rearm the Kiev regime to prepare it for a new offensive. I repeat: we are not talking about freezing the conflict, but about ending it,” he emphasized.
“We call for turning this tragic page in history”
The Russian president further added that the status of the Crimean peninsula, the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Lugansk People’s Republic, and Zaporozhye and Kherson provinces as parts of Russia should be enshrined in international agreements.
He noted that Moscow’s immovable position on Ukraine is based on the “neutral, non-aligned, denuclearized status of Ukraine, as well as its demilitarization and denazification.”
He also expressed hope that all the unilateral coercive measures imposed on Russia will be lifted.
“We call for turning this tragic page in history and, even if it is difficult, gradually, step by step, starting to restore relations of trust and good neighborliness between Russia and Ukraine, as well as Europe as a whole,” he stressed.
Zelensky’s legitimacy has expired
Putin also addressed the question of Volodymyr Zelensky’s legitimacy. “The presidential term of the head of state of Ukraine has expired, and with it, his legitimacy, which cannot be restored by any trickery,” he said.
In this context, he reiterated that “the origin of the current regime in Kiev was an armed coup,” which took place with US backing in 2014. Now, “the government of Ukraine is again, as in 2014, usurper and illegal.”
However, he mentioned that there are still legitimate elected bodies in Ukraine. “Today, the Verkhovna Rada [Ukrainian Parliament] is the legitimate body, unlike the presidency,” he stated.
(RT)
Translation: Orinoco Tribune
OT/SC/SF
