MOSCOW, May 15. /TASS/. Moscow is open to dialogue on Ukraine to resolve the conflict peacefully but negotiations must take its interests into account, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an interview with the Chinese news agency Xinhua, which was published on the Kremlin website.
"We are seeking a comprehensive, sustainable and just settlement of this conflict through peaceful means. We are open to a dialogue on Ukraine, but such negotiations must take into account the interests of all countries involved in the conflict, including Russia's," he pointed out.
"They must also involve a substantive discussion on global stability and security guarantees for Russia's opponents and, naturally, for Russia itself. Needless to say, these must be reliable guarantees," Putin added.
The Russian leader pointed to problems getting such guarantees from the West. "That is where the main problem is, since we are dealing with states whose ruling circles seek to substitute the world order based on international law with an "order based on certain rules," which they keep talking about but which no one has ever seen, no one has agreed to, and which, apparently, tend to change depending on the current political situation and interests of those who invent these rules," Putin stressed.
"Russia stands ready for negotiations; moreover, we had engaged in such negotiations. On April 15, 2022, in Istanbul, together with the Ukrainian delegation, we drafted a peace agreement, taking into account the demands of the Ukrainian side, including those on future security guarantees for Ukraine. Moreover, the head of the Ukrainian delegation initialed the main provisions of the draft document. Our Western partners tried to convince us that in order to finalize and sign the agreement, it was necessary to provide conditions. The main point was that Russian troops be withdrawn away from Kiev, the capital of Ukraine. And so we did. But instead of signing the peace agreement, the Ukrainian side suddenly announced the cessation of negotiations. Later on, Ukrainian officials stated that they had done so, inter alia, because their Western allies had recommended that they continue hostilities and apply joint efforts to achieve Russia's strategic defeat. We have never refused to negotiate," Putin emphasized.
Putin also said that the West is trying to "punish" and isolate Moscow, while turning a blind eye to Ukraine’s terrorist attacks inside Russia.
According to him, the West is not "ready to engage in an equal, honest and open dialogue based on mutual respect and consideration of each other's interests." Western countries "are reluctant to discuss the underlying causes, the very origins of the global crisis, which has manifested itself, inter alia, in the dramatic situation around Ukraine. Why? Because today's global shocks have been provoked precisely by their policies in the previous years and decades," Putin noted.
"Instead, Western elites are stubbornly working to ‘punish’ Russia, isolate and weaken it, supplying the Kiev authorities with money and arms. They have imposed almost 16,000 unilateral illegitimate sanctions against our country. They are threatening to dismember our country. They are illegally trying to appropriate our foreign assets. They are turning a blind eye to the resurgence of Nazism and to Ukraine-sponsored terrorist attacks in our territory," the Russian president stressed.
Moscow needs reliable security guarantees but it’s a problem getting them from the West, the Russian President noted.
According to him, talks on Ukraine must involve "a substantive discussion on global stability and security guarantees for Russia's opponents and, naturally, for Russia itself."
"Needless to say, these must be reliable guarantees. That is where the main problem is, since we are dealing with states whose ruling circles seek to substitute the world order based on international law with an ‘order based on certain rules,’ which they keep talking about but which no one has ever seen, no one has agreed to, and which, apparently, tend to change depending on the current political situation and interests of those who invent these rules," Putin pointed out.
Moscow believes that the steps Beijing proposed to resolve the Ukraine issue are practicable and constructive, but neither Ukraine nor its Western patrons support these initiatives, Putin added.
"We commend China's approaches to resolving the crisis in Ukraine. Beijing is well aware of its root causes and global geopolitical significance, which is reflected in its 12·point plan entitled ‘China's Position on the Political Settlement of the Ukraine Crisis’ published in February 2023," he noted. "As for the additional four principles of conflict resolution recently voiced by President Xi Jinping, they seamlessly fit in the above-mentioned plan," Putin added.
"Beijing proposes practicable and constructive steps to achieve peace by refraining from pursuing vested interests and constant escalation of tensions, minimizing the negative impact of the conflict on the global economy and the stability of global value chains. The steps build on the idea that we need to forego the ‘Cold War mentality’ and ensure indivisible security and respect for international law and the UN Charter in their entirety and interrelation. They could therefore lay the groundwork for a political and diplomatic process that would take into account Russia's security concerns and contribute to achieving a long-term and sustainable peace," Putin emphasized.
"Unfortunately, neither Ukraine nor its Western patrons support these initiatives," he said.
"They are not ready to engage in an equal, honest and open dialogue based on mutual respect and consideration of each other's interests. They are reluctant to discuss the underlying causes, the very origins of the global crisis, which has manifested itself, inter alia, in the dramatic situation around Ukraine. Why? Because today's global shocks have been provoked precisely by their policies in the previous years and decades," the Russian leader added.