The German government welcomes the talks between Ukraine and Russia. The meeting can turn out to be difficult, as well as drag on. This was announced on Monday, February 28, at a briefing by the official representative of the German Cabinet, Steffen Hebeshtreit.
“The government as a whole welcomes that negotiations are underway. Diplomatic decisions are the only reasonable ones, military ones are always difficult. At the same time, we know, of course, that these will be very difficult negotiations and may drag on,” Hebestreit said.
Negotiations between Russia and Ukraine and the Gomel region of Belarus began earlier in the day. The parties are meeting on the Belarusian-Ukrainian border on the banks of the Pripyat River in the Gomel region.
Also on Monday, the Ukrainian delegation arrived by helicopter to the place of negotiations with the Russian side. The presidential administration of Ukraine reported that the Ukrainian delegation included Defense Minister Oleksiy Reznikov, Deputy Foreign Minister Mykola Tochitsky, adviser to the head of the presidential office Mikhail Podolyak, deputy Rustem Umerov, head of the Servant of the People faction David Arakhamia, as well as the first deputy head of the Ukrainian delegation in the tripartite contact Andrey Kostin group.
On February 27, the Russian delegation arrived in Belarus for talks with the Ukrainian side and stated that it was ready to hold them in Gomel. However, Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky said in a video message that Kyiv was not ready for negotiations on the territory of Belarus and demanded a change of site.
Later, Kyiv nevertheless agreed to conduct negotiations, but on the Ukrainian-Belarusian border, in the area of the Pripyat River. Zelensky’s office noted that the meeting will be held without preconditions.
On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced the launch of an operation to protect the civilian population of Donbass. After that, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky accused Russia of hitting the country’s military infrastructure and introduced martial law throughout Ukraine. He also said that Kyiv is breaking off diplomatic relations with Moscow and withdrawing its diplomats from the embassy.
The Permanent Representative of the Russian Federation to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, in turn, pointed out that this cannot be called a war. He stated that the Russian authorities are still open for dialogue, but they do not intend to allow a new bloody massacre in the Donbass.
On February 21, Putin signed decrees recognizing the independence of the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics (DNR and LNR), as well as treaties of friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with the republics. The documents were ratified the next day.
The situation in Donbass escalated on February 17, 2022. The DPR and LPR reported heavy shelling by Ukrainian security forces, including from heavy weapons. The republics announced a general mobilization and evacuation of civilians to the territory of Russia.
Since 2014, the Ukrainian authorities have been conducting an operation against the residents of Donbass, who refused to recognize the new government in Ukraine. At the same time, Kyiv blames Moscow for the current situation. Russia has repeatedly stated that it is not a party to the conflict.
For more up-to-date videos and details about the situation in Donbass, watch the Izvestia TV channel.
#Germany #welcomed #talks #Russia #Ukraine