MOSCOW, December 9. /TASS/. Moscow assumes that the entourage of US President-elect Donald Trump is closely following Russia's approaches to the settlement of the crisis in Ukraine, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin told reporters.
"We assume that the West, including the entourage of the US president-elect, is closely following our approaches to the settlement of the Ukrainian crisis and has certainly taken a close look at Russian President [Vladimir Putin]'s initiative of June 14, 2024, which very clearly shows our vision of a long-term, sustainable settlement of the Ukrainian crisis," the senior diplomat said in response to a TASS question.
"It is this initiative that should be the basis for any further contacts on the settlement of the crisis in Ukraine, if the West and the Kiev regime controlled by it show readiness for such contacts," Galuzin emphasized.
On June 14, Russian President Vladimir Putin at a meeting with the Foreign Ministry set out the country’s conditions for settling the situation in Ukraine. Among them are the withdrawal of the Ukrainian armed forces from Donbass and Novorossiya and Kiev's refusal to join NATO. In addition, Russia wants all Western sanctions against it lifted and demands that Ukraine commit to a non-aligned and nuclear-free status. Putin indicated that if Ukraine and the West refuse these conditions, they could change in the future. Kiev rejected the Russian peace plan. After the massive Ukrainian attack on the Kursk Region that began on August 6, the Russian leader said that negotiations with a government that attacks civilians are pointless. On December 4, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that there are currently no grounds for Russia-Ukraine negotiations.