KIEV, March 5. /TASS/. Both Ukraine and Russia have taken tough positions in talks so the negotiation process will not go easily, Advisor to the Ukrainian Presidential Office Mikhail Podolyak said at a briefing in Lvov.

"Russia’s stance is tough," he noted. "However, the position of the Ukrainian Commander-in-Chief and Ukraine in general is also tough, so talks will not go easily, but there will be talks," he pointed out.

According to Podolyak, Russia’s position is clear to Ukraine but the country’s President Vladimir Zelensky won’t make concessions "diminishing Ukraine’s fight for territorial integrity." The support of Western partners strengthens Kiev’s position in talks, the Ukrainian official added.

Podolyak also said that talks proceeded in a constructive atmosphere. "Strange as it may seem, the atmosphere was very constructive so we held a conversation. The other party made claims, we also made claims, and then we discussed them," he noted.

Another member of the Ukrainian delegation, head of the Servant of the People ruling party’s parliamentary faction David Arakhamia, said at a briefing that Kiev and Moscow had agreed to hold talks behind closed doors "in order to be able to make some agreements."

Arakhamia stressed that it was too early to arrange a meeting between the presidents of Ukraine and Russia as the two delegations first needed to define an agenda for the two leaders to discuss. Kiev did not send an official request for a direct dialogue with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Arakhamia said.

On February 24, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a special military operation based on a request from the heads of the Donbass republics. The Russian leader stressed that Moscow had no plans to occupy Ukrainian territories and the goal was to demilitarize and denazify the country.