Elections in the territories of Donbass not controlled by Kiev are possible only after the withdrawal of "all troops" from there. This was stated by President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky at a press conference after negotiations with President of Slovakia Zuzana Chaputova. According to him, he plans to discuss this issue and a number of other problems at the upcoming summit of the “Norman Four”.
The President of Ukraine said that during the summit he plans to first of all solve the issue of the exchange of retained persons according to the “all for all” formula and agree on the complete withdrawal of troops from the contact line.
“The main task of the“ Norman Four ”is not to raise, but to finally solve the issue of the exchange of prisoners according to the“ all for all ”formula, the Ukrainian president said. - The second question is the final decision with the withdrawal of troops, first in Zolotoy and Petrovsky, and then within a clear time frame throughout the territory. And the third. If we are discussing local elections in the temporarily occupied territories, we must understand that there will be a clear election date after the withdrawal of all troops from there, ”RIA Novosti reports his words.
According to political analyst Ivan Mezuho, Zelensky has enough authority to change the situation in the Donbass for the better and contribute to the peace process. However, the Ukrainian leader is "delaying the process," the expert said.
“He does not have a clear strategy for the Donbass. Because negotiations between him and Donald Trump have not yet taken place, during which the American side is likely to impose its own scenario for the development of the situation in the Donbass to Ukraine. I think that before Zelensky meets with Trump, there is no need to talk about serious progress in this matter. Obviously, the US is not comfortable with the Norman format of negotiations. And some recent statements by the American leader indicate that Washington is changing its policy towards Ukraine, ”the political scientist believes.
During his speech, Zelensky also added that at the upcoming summit, it may not be possible to solve all the problems voiced. However, the Ukrainian president expects a “normal result” from the negotiations.
The last meeting of the “Norman Four” was held in October 2016. Then the parties discussed the implementation of the Minsk agreements and confirmed the importance of the separation of forces and assets in three areas: in the village of Lugansk, Petrovsky and Zolotoy.
In addition, the Ukrainian leader again assured that his main task as president of the country is to restore peace in the Donbass and “return” Crimea.
Recall that Crimea became the Russian region after the 2014 referendum, in which the vast majority of the inhabitants of the peninsula called for reunification with Russia. Moscow has repeatedly emphasized that the issue of Crimea’s membership is closed.
- President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky
- RIA News
On September 15, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Vadim Pristayko told what results Zelensky expects to achieve during the next summit in the Norman format.
“President Zelensky would like to have a final solution to the issue in the east and a finished war,” the UNIAN minister quotes.
At the same time, the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said earlier that the country's authorities are not ready to fix in the constitution a provision on the special status of unrecognized Donbass republics, as well as declare amnesty for all parties to the conflict. This caused criticism from both the LPR and the DPR, as well as in Russia. In particular, a member of the Council of the Russian Federation Alexey Pushkov noted that on the part of Ukraine this is a violation of the 5th and 11th paragraphs of the Minsk Agreements and "means a direct refusal to implement them."
This contradiction raises questions regarding the real position of the leadership of the Ukrainian state in the Donbass, said Vladimir Olenchenko, senior researcher at the Center for European Studies of IMEMO RAS.
“I think that it is now important to get Ukraine to clearly define what they want to discuss in the Norman format and what agreements they want to reach. Such conflicting statements are very disorienting. I believe that now it is important for Ukraine to realize that a meeting in the Norman format is possible only when the position of Kiev is clear and understandable, ”the expert said in an interview with RT.
At the same time, the press secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov reiterated that the position of the Ukrainian authorities regarding a settlement in the east of the country requires "very careful preparation (of the future. - RT ) of the summit so that it is effective."
At the same time, Peskov reaffirmed that the date of the next meeting of the Quartet has not yet been agreed.
“So far there are no specific dates for the summit (in the Norman format. - RT ). So far, contacts are being made in order to clarify possible prospects for productivity for the summit, ”PASSKOV quotes TASS.