MOSCOW, March 9. /TASS/. Russia sees no desire on behalf of the Kiev authorities to launch substantial negotiations on the Ukrainian conflict’s settlement, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday.

"So far, we see no desire on the part of our Ukrainian neighbors to begin serious talks," Lavrov said at a news conference following talks with his Saudi Arabian counterpart Faisal Bin Farhan Al Saud.

"Moreover, I have stated repeatedly that [Ukrainian President Vladimir] Zelensky issued a decree last September prohibiting any negotiations with Russia, while Zelensky’s Western patrons constantly state that Russia should be defeated on the battlefield in order to start talks from a position of strength. Judge for yourself how reasonable such statements are."

Lavrov noted that Russia welcomes Saudi Arabia's interest in helping facilitate the settlement of the ongoing situation as soon as possible as well as resolving it in the context of Russia's legitimate demands, which have for years gone ignored after the unconstitutional coup in Ukraine.

"You have mentioned in particular the exchange of prisoners of war. There have been a series of them, with the latest one held recently, literally the day before yesterday," Lavrov said.

"To a large extent, the arrangements that made this possible were made with the assistance of Saudi Arabia and a number of other Arab states. We are grateful and believe that it is important to maintain this course."

The Russian Defense Ministry announced earlier that 90 Russian soldiers had been returned from territory under the control of Kiev. They were airlifted to Moscow by Russian Aerospace Forces planes for medical treatment and rehabilitation at ministry facilities.

Russia’s special military operation

On February 21, 2022, President Vladimir Putin announced that Moscow was recognizing the sovereignty of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, (the DPR and LPR respectively). Russia signed agreements on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance with their leaders. Moscow recognized the Donbass republics in accordance with the DPR and LPR constitutions within the boundaries of the Donetsk and Lugansk Regions as of the beginning of 2014.

Russian President Putin announced on February 24, 2022, that in response to a request by the heads of the Donbass republics for assistance, he had decided to carry out a special military operation in Ukraine. The DPR and the LPR launched an operation to liberate their territories under Kiev’s control.

From September 23 to September 27, 2022, the Donetsk People’s Republic and the Lugansk People’s Republic as well as the Kherson Region and the Zaporozhye Region held a referendum where the majority of voters opted to join Russia.

On September 30, 2022, President Putin and the heads of the DPR, the LPR, and the Zaporozhye and Kherson Regions signed treaties on their entry to Russia. Later, the State Duma and the Federation Council (the lower and upper houses of Russia’s parliament) approved legislation on ratifying these treaties, as well as federal constitutional laws on the accession of the four regions to Russia.