Ukraine is prepared to declare its neutrality, give up aspirations of becoming a NATO member, and is open to compromise on the fate of the Donbas region, President Volodymyr Zelensky said ahead of a new round of peace talks slated to start Tuesday in Istanbul.
Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s foreign minister, added Monday that the most ambitious goal negotiators had when going into the high-stakes meeting was an agreement on a ceasefire, even a temporary one. He then added that humanitarian relief was high on the list.
Absent from the list of topics to be discussed are three of Russia’s core demands, which include the “de-Nazification” and “demilitarization” of Ukraine as well as legal protection for the Russian language in Ukraine, according to the Financial Times, citing four people familiar with the talks.
The concessions have come as the war, which began on Feb. 24, has claimed countless civilian lives, uprooted millions, and leveled entire cities and towns.
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Envoys from both sides have met multiple times before but have not been able to reach an agreement. Russia’s monthlong ground offensive has largely stalled as a tougher-than-expected Ukrainian defensive has put up fights in several key cities. Western nations, including the United States, have sent billions of dollars in weapons and ammunition to help Kyiv fend off Moscow, though Zelensky has repeatedly asked for more military aid.
Some Ukraine and Western backers have been skeptical that Putin is ready to negotiate and have expressed concern the Russian leader, who has been increasingly isolated from the rest of the world, could be using Tuesday’s talks as a smokescreen to replenish his military.
David Arakhamia, head of Zelensky’s political party, told the Financial Times both sides were close to an agreement on security guarantees but urged caution. He added that “all the issues” have been “on the table since the beginning” but that “lots of points — like in every single item, there are unresolved points.”
Another section under consideration calls for Ukraine to refrain from developing nuclear weapons or hosting foreign military bases, according to the report. In exchange, Ukraine would get “wording close to NATO’s Article 5” whereby the “alliances’ members must come to each others’ aid if one is attacked — for security guarantees from countries including Russia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, China, Italy, Poland, Israel, and Turkey.”
The prospective guarantors have not yet agreed to uphold Ukraine’s security but even if they did, it would still need to be ratified by Ukraine’s parliament and could take up to a year.
“The only resolved [issue] is the type of international guarantees Ukraine is looking for, but … we still have to get the approval from the guarantors otherwise the deal will never fly,” Arakhamia said.
The draft’s biggest sticking point leaves Ukraine’s attempt to reclaim territory taken by Russia on the cutting room floor, Financial Times reported.
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Moscow has demanded Kyiv recognize Russia’s control over the Crimean peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014, as well as two territories run by separatists in the Donbas region.
“We will never recognize any kind of borders except as they are in our Declaration of Independence,” Arakhamia said. “This is the most critical point.”
Ukraine said it was prepared to discuss humanitarian issues in the area, including restoring Crimea’s water supply.
If a ceasefire holds, the next steps would be for Ukraine and Russia’s foreign ministers to meet to draft separate documents to finalize the security guarantees followed by a meeting between Putin and Zelensky.
A second person briefed on the talks seemed less optimistic of that happening any time soon and accused Russia of changing its position daily.
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Putin’s spokesperson, Dmitry Peskov, told Interfax on Monday that Moscow could not “speak of any significant achievements and breakthroughs.”
