MOSCOW, July 30. /TASS/. Russia spent eight years trying to figure out how to save Ukraine's integrity and proposed the Minsk agreements. However, Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky exchanged the country's unity for the US promise to "conquer" Russia, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

"Russia has been trying to find ways to save Ukraine's integrity for eight years, proposing the Minsk agreements formula, according to which the country's unity would be ensured despite existing internal and external contradictions. Zelensky traded a unique, truly advantageous position for the West's promise to make him Russia’s conqueror," she wrote on her Telegram channel.

Zakharova believes "if Kiev had listened to Moscow and refused the American promises of a blitzkrieg, Ukraine would now be whole, only without Crimea and with continuous humanitarian aid."

The diplomat also noted, "If we look at the last decade, Ukraine was in a better position for eight years: from 2014 to 2022.".