At the latest round of talks in Belarus, Russia presented Ukraine with specific proposals for a settlement. This was announced on Thursday, March 10, by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.
“At the last round of negotiations in Belarus, the Russian side presented extremely specific considerations already in the form of a draft legal document,” he said after a meeting with his Ukrainian counterpart Dmitry Kuleba.
He noted that the Ukrainian side, having taken these proposals into consideration in Kyiv, would give a concrete answer to them.
Lavrov also stressed that Moscow is in favor of any contacts on the problems of the Ukrainian crisis and issues related to ways out of it.
According to the minister, Russia proceeds from the fact that these contacts will not be used to “replace or devalue the real main negotiating track, which is developing on the Belarusian territory at the level of two delegations.”
Earlier that day, the first meeting between Lavrov and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba after the start of the Russian special operation to protect Donbass ended. The talks were held on the sidelines of a diplomatic forum in Turkey and lasted more than an hour and a half.
The head of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry called the negotiations difficult. According to him, humanitarian corridors and the issue of a ceasefire “at least for 24 hours” were discussed.
Russia and Ukraine held three stages of negotiations: February 28 – in the Gomel region of Belarus, March 3 and March 7 – in Belovezhskaya Pushcha. Following the results of the last meeting in Kyiv, it was stated that there had been some positive progress in improving the logistics of humanitarian corridors. In Moscow, they indicated that the expectations of the Russian side were not justified.
The situation in Donbass escalated in mid-February due to shelling by the Ukrainian military. The authorities of the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics (DPR and LPR) announced the evacuation of residents in the Russian Federation, and also turned to Moscow for help. On February 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree recognizing the independence of the DPR and LPR and promised to support the republics.
Russia launched an operation to protect the civilian population of Donbass on February 24. The Russian side emphasized that it does not hatch plans for the occupation of Ukraine, and strikes are carried out only on the military infrastructure of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
BFor more up-to-date videos and details about the situation in Donbass, watch the Izvestia TV channel.