ZDeputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Melnyk: arms supplies to Kiev will push Moscow to peace Kiev is ready for peace, and supplies of Western weapons will help stop the armed conflict, Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine Andriy Melnyk believes. The Russian authorities say that, on the contrary, it delays the fighting
Kiev wants the conflict to end, but Moscow is not ready for this, Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine, former Ukrainian ambassador to Germany Andriy Melnyk said in an interview with ZDF.
“Today we want peace, but [Russian President Vladimir] Putin does not seem to be ready, and therefore we need weapons to push him to this,” Melnik believes.
According to the Deputy minister, in the current conditions, it is pointless to talk about the possibility of dialogue with Russia: “Two people are needed for dancing, two for peace talks.”
The diplomat expressed hope that Germany “will play a leading role” in the issue of supplying fighters to Ukraine, as it was with Leopard tanks. Berlin was hesitant to approve their shipment for a long time, but on January 25 agreed to transfer 14 Leopard 2 to Kiev and allowed the allies to supply this equipment. On the same day, the US authorities announced the delivery of 31 M1 Abrams tanks to Ukraine. At the same time, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and US President Joe Biden oppose sending fighter jets to the Ukrainian military.
The Russian authorities have repeatedly criticized the supply of Western weapons to Kiev, pointing out that this drags out the conflict and does not contribute to negotiations.
At the end of January, the deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Sergei Vershinin, said that there are no compelling prerequisites for dialogue with Ukraine now. A similar statement was made by the head of the department, Sergey Lavrov, saying that “there can be no talk of negotiations with [Ukrainian President Vladimir] Zelensky, well, at least because he legally prohibited negotiations withthe Russian government». The minister is referring to Zelensky’s decree that dialogue with Vladimir Putin is impossible. It was signed after the referendums on the accession of four regions to Russia were held at the end of September. Its results are not recognized by most states, and Moscow rules out further discussion of the status of these territories.
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In autumn, the Ukrainian authorities called the conditions for starting negotiations: “restoration of territorial integrity, respect for the UN Charter, compensation for all losses caused by the war, punishment of every war criminal and guarantees that this will not happen again.” Zelensky also proposed a “formula for peace” that includes the withdrawal of Russian troops. Moscow considers these conditions unacceptable. The Kremlin noted that the Ukrainian authorities should take into account the current realities and the emergence of new subjects in Russia. At the same time, the Foreign Ministry believes that Kiev could clarify through intermediaries how it presents possible negotiations with Moscow.
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