Russia requested negotiations with Ukraine 0
(Dan Tri) – Russia expressed its stance after the President of Ukraine said he was ready to negotiate with Moscow on issues related to Crimea and the separatist Donbass region.
Negotiation delegation of Russia and Ukraine (Photo: Tass).
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today, March 9, that Ukraine must recognize the Crimean peninsula as part of Russian territory and consider the republics in the Donbass region as independent countries.
`Our position is very clear. Crimea is a Russian region and this must be recognized both de facto and legally,` Mr. Peskov told reporters.
Mr Peskov also said that the breakaway republics of Donetsk and Lugansk (DPR and LPR) must also be recognized as `sovereign independent states`.
`As for the DPR and LPR republics, these are independent sovereign states and are recognized by the Russian Federation. This also needs to be recognized both practically and legally,` Mr. Peskov added.
The Kremlin spokesman’s statement came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on March 8 that he was ready to negotiate to find an acceptable solution related to the two separatist regions of Donetsk and Lugansk.
Responding to a reporter’s question about whether he was ready to accept Russia’s proposals to recognize Crimea as part of Russian territory and recognize independence for Donbass, President Zelensky said: `I
`We can discuss that and find a satisfactory solution on how the people there continue to live. To me, the important thing is how the people in those territories will live.
Previously, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on March 7 that Russia would stop its military campaign in Ukraine `immediately` if Kiev met the conditions set forth by Moscow.
`They (Ukraine) need to amend the constitution, in which Ukraine will abandon any intention of joining any union. We also told them that they should recognize the Crimean peninsula as part of their territory.`
Russia annexed the Crimean peninsula in March 2014, after authorities here conducted a referendum in which 96% of Crimean voters supported annexation.
On February 24, Russia began implementing a military campaign in Ukraine, not long after recognizing `independence and sovereignty` for two separatist regions in Eastern Ukraine.
