ANKARA, June 3. /TASS/. Russia is ready for talks but doesn’t see any such willingness in Ukraine, Russian Ambassador to London Andrey Kelin said in an interview with Turkey’s TRT World television.
"We were prepared a year ago. We are prepared right now," he said. "The problem is that Ukraine has publicly prohibited this type of negotiations by law, by decree. We do not see any desire on the part of Ukraine so far or desire on the part of Washington or London, who are behind the Ukrainian government, to negotiate."
Russia would be prepared to negotiate right now but it will not be "the same lines as it is," according to the ambassador.
"We have already been in this trap when we have stopped movements and any actions and Ukraine said, ‘No. We are going to fight,’" he said.
It would not be appropriate to repeat the same situation to allow Ukraine to "refurbish itself, rearm itself, to get more power" while the hostilities are on pause, according to the diplomat.
"We were close to an agreement even two years ago in April. Initially, the negotiations took place in Minsk, then in certain stages it moved to Istanbul. The draft agreement was initialed by Ukrainian side. We have proof of that. But later on they have got either themselves, or it was dictated by London or Washington, that they should not negotiate, but they should fight," Kelin said.
In response to a question about the outlook for Russia’s summer campaign in Ukraine, the ambassador said, "The overall opinion is that nothing will stop us."
"We have serious advantages on different lines. We have numerical superiorities in equipment, in techniques, in armor, in artillery and also in manpower. We did manage our economy to go seriously to help the army. We have trained people there," he said.
"In Ukraine, it is totally different. Its economy depends on the other side. It does not produce any significant advantages or any significant supplies to the army," he said. "The soldiers are now less and less trained."
The renewed push for military mobilization in Ukraine means conscripts "are not motivated at all to go to fight, so most of them are trying to escape," according to the ambassador.