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Negotiations on Ukrainian settlement possible within 7-8 months — Italian top brass

Guido Crosetto had previously expressed hope that the Ukrainian conflict would end within a year

© Alexey Konovalov/TASS

ROME, September 14. /TASS/. Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto believes that attempts to settle the Ukrainian conflict will be made in the next seven to eight months, provided that Russia declares a ceasefire.

"We hope that attempts to resolve the [Ukrainian] conflict will be made in a relatively short period of time - in the next seven to eight months," the ANSA news agency quoted him as saying. At the same time, Crosetto, who is on a visit to London, pointed out that the minimum condition for the start of negotiations is "a preliminary ceasefire on the part of Moscow."

Top Italian defense official had previously expressed hope that the Ukrainian conflict would end within a year.

Russian authorities have repeatedly stated their readiness to negotiate with Ukraine on the settlement of the conflict. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said earlier that the longer Kiev delays negotiations with Moscow, the more difficult it will be to reach an agreement. He added that the first step for negotiations between Russia and Ukraine should be the cancellation of Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky's decree banning dialogue with Moscow.

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Ukraine crisis Italy

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