Ukraine’s top diplomat said on Monday that his country wanted to begin peace talks at the UN by the end of February – but would only allow Russia to participate if its leaders were brought before a global criminal court for war crimes.
“Every war ends diplomatically”, Dmytro Kuleba he told the Associated Press. “Every war ends as a result of actions taken on the battlefield and at the negotiating table.”
“The United Nations is likely to be the best place to carry this summit because it isn’t about doing a favor to any particular country,” he added. “It’s all about getting everyone on board.”
Kuleba, 41, added that he would love UN Secretary-General António Guterres to mediate future talks to coincide with the anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine on February 24.
“He has proven to be an efficient mediator and an efficient negotiator, and most significantly, as a man of principle and integrity,” Kuleba said of Guterres. “So we might welcome his energetic participation.”
Kuleba spoke a day after Russian President Vladimir Putin said the Kremlin was “able to negotiate with all involved on acceptable solutions” to end the 10-month war.
“We should not refusing to barter, they’re,” Putin told Russian television.
“I feel that we’re moving in the right direction, we’re defending our national interests, the interests of our residents, our nation. And we now have no selection but to guard our residents,” the 70-year-old added
Kuleba downplayed Putin’s comments
“They recurrently say they’re able to negotiate, which is just not true because all the things they do on the battlefield says the opposite,” he said.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky presented a 10-point peace formula ultimately month’s G20 summit in Indonesia, which included the restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, the removal of all Russian troops from the territory, the release of all prisoners and punishment for war crimes, in addition to security guarantees.
On Monday, Kuleba insisted that Russia be held accountable for atrocities committed by its military, saying that Moscow “can only be invited to this step in this manner.”
In an address to US lawmakers last week, Zelensky said he discussed his peace plan and summit proposal with President Biden at a meeting in the Oval Office and confirmed that Biden gave him his full support.
Kuleba said he was “absolutely pleased” with Zelensky’s visit to Washington, where the Biden administration announced it could supply Ukraine with a Patriot system battery.
This shows how necessary each the United States and Ukraine are to the United States,” Kuleba said, adding that Washington has developed a program to finish missile battery training faster than usual “without compromising the quality of use of these weapons on the battlefield.”
While Kuleba didn’t mention a specific timeframe, he only said it could be “much lower than six months” and can be implemented “outside” Ukraine.