Russia says Ukraine settlement conditions proposed by UK, Germany, France are unacceptable
Quick Look
- Russia's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova stated that the settlement conditions for Ukraine proposed by the UK, Germany, and France are unacceptable.
- She criticized the 'Zelensky formula' and accused European leaders of promoting militarization rather than peace, citing EU diplomat Kaja Kallas's remarks about Europe not being a neutral mediator.
AI-generated summary
Why It Matters
Russia has responded to settlement proposals for the Ukraine conflict put forth by the UK, Germany, and France, deeming them unacceptable. The proposals were made following a meeting between leaders of these European nations and Ukrainian President Zelensky.
MOSCOW, June 11. /TASS/. The Eurotroika (the United Kingdom, Germany, and France) have proposed conditions for a settlement in Ukraine that are clearly unacceptable to Moscow, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
"There is nothing new in the statement of the three European leaders. They tried to promote the same theses back in 2022-2024 in the Copenhagen and Burgenstock formats, supporting the dead-end 'Zelensky formula'. Those forums have long been forgotten because they discredited themselves, being initially aimed not at peace, but at war," she said in a statement.
"Dmitry Sergeyevich Peskov, press secretary of the Russian president, also highlighted the contradictory positions of France, Germany, and Britain. With their statement, the leaders pretend to call for peace, but in reality, they are presenting a priori unacceptable conditions, boosting the production of long-range weapons for Kiev, and generally advancing the militarization of Ukraine and Europe," Zakharova added.
She pointed out that in this way the Europeans are pursuing a course aimed at "preventing the creation of conditions for negotiations on a truly comprehensive, just and lasting peace. It's noteworthy that they don't hide it. Two weeks ago, on May 28 of this year, the European Union's top diplomat Kaja Kallas said the following: ‘Europe will never be a neutral mediator between Russia and Ukraine, because we are on the side of Ukraine and protect our own security interests.’ Thus, she admitted that Europe is claiming a place at the negotiating table, in fact, as part of a united delegation of the West and Ukraine against Russia," Zakharova added.
About the statement of Eurotroika
On June 7, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Vladimir Zelensky held talks on Downing Street. Following the meeting, they issued a policy statement with five basic conditions for starting the settlement process, including security guarantees for Ukraine, the deployment of multinational forces, the continued freezing of Russian assets until full compensation for damage, and an immediate and complete ceasefire.
Open Questions
- What are the specific five conditions proposed by the Eurotroika?
- What are Russia's counter-proposals for a settlement?
- Will there be further diplomatic efforts to bridge the gap between Russia and the Eurotroika/Ukraine?
- What are the implications of Kaja Kallas's statement for future mediation efforts?
