On Sunday, March 6, Russian President Vladimir Putin held a series of telephone conversations with world leaders.

According to the Kremlin, the topic of discussion was a special operation in Ukraine.

In particular, at the initiative of Paris, a conversation was held with French President Emmanuel Macron.

The Kremlin said that Vladimir Putin informed his colleague about the state of affairs in the negotiations between the Russian delegation and Ukrainian representatives.

“Readiness was expressed to continue the dialogue with the unconditional fulfillment of well-known Russian demands.

The main thing is that the Ukrainian side should seriously approach the achievement of agreements, the implementation of which is important for the cessation of hostilities, ”the message says.

In addition, Putin informed the French leader in detail about the incident in the area of ​​the Zaporozhye nuclear power plant, provoked by Ukrainian radicals.

“Attempts to shift responsibility for this incident to the Russian military are part of a cynical propaganda campaign.

Russian troops, in cooperation with the Ukrainian security unit and personnel, continue to ensure the operation of the nuclear power plant in the normal mode, the radioactive background remains normal - all these facts have been officially confirmed by the IAEA.

The physical and nuclear safety of the station is reliably protected, ”the Kremlin stressed.

The President also discussed with Macron the failure of the Kiev regime to comply with the agreements on the evacuation of civilians from the areas of clashes.

The head of state drew attention to the fact that the Ukrainian authorities again used the granted humanitarian pause only to build up forces and means in their positions.

“The President of France was again invited to work actively with the Kiev authorities in order to comply with the norms of international humanitarian law,” the message says.

Macron and Putin last spoke on March 3, after which the French leader called Volodymyr Zelensky.

Conversation with Erdogan

Also on March 6, Vladimir Putin had a conversation with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

The Russian leader informed Erdogan about the course of the special operation in Ukraine and explained in detail the main goals and objectives set.

“The readiness of the Russian side for a dialogue with the Ukrainian authorities and with foreign partners in order to resolve the conflict was confirmed.

At the same time, attention was drawn to the futility of any attempts to drag out the negotiation process, which is used by the Ukrainian security forces to regroup their forces and means.

In this regard, it was emphasized that the suspension of the special operation is possible only if Kiev ceases hostilities and fulfills the well-known requirements of Russia, ”the Kremlin commentary says.

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In addition, the leaders reaffirmed their mutual intention to continue mutually beneficial Russian-Turkish trade and economic cooperation.

In turn, Erdogan "gave a critical assessment of the frantic campaign to discriminate against Russian culture and its figures, which is gaining momentum in a number of Western states," the message emphasized.

Recall that recently Erdogan has repeatedly stated his readiness to become an intermediary in the negotiation process between Ukraine and Russia.

He first made such a proposal in November 2021.

Then the President of Turkey stressed that Ankara stands for "peace with an emphasis on the situation of the Crimean Tatars."

“Ankara stands for the positive development of processes.

Turkey is ready to mediate.

I am ready to discuss this issue with the parties,” the Anadolu agency quoted him as saying.

Erdogan continued to initiate mediation services from his side this year as well.

So, in early February, he paid a visit to Ukraine, where he held talks with Zelensky, at which Ankara’s desire to play such a role in the settlement in Donbass was discussed.

Shortly thereafter, the Turkish president announced that he allegedly reached agreements with Zelensky on organizing his meeting with Putin.

Already after the start of the special operation in Ukraine, on February 27, the head of the Public Relations Department of the Turkish presidential administration, Fahrettin Altun, said that Erdogan offered to mediate between the Russian Federation and Ukraine, since Ankara has strong relations with both Moscow and Kiev.

At the same time, Altun said that the unwillingness of the world community to heed Turkey's calls to reform the UN system allegedly led to the current situation.

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It should be noted that Turkey takes a controversial position on a number of issues related to relations between the Russian Federation and Ukraine.

Thus, Ankara refuses to recognize the results of the referendum in Crimea, after which the peninsula returned to Russia.

In addition, the Turkish Foreign Ministry stated that the results of the elections to the State Duma held in Crimea have no legal force for the republic.

Turkey also transferred weapons to Kiev, in particular, Bayraktar attack drones.

Although Moscow has repeatedly noted that by selling such weapons to Kiev, the Turkish side fuels the militaristic moods of Ukraine.

However, political analysts do not consider Erdogan's attempts to regulate the negotiation process on Ukraine as something unexpected: in this way, the Turkish president wants to strengthen his influence in the region.

“There is no contradiction here if you look at it from the point of view of Turkey's national interests.

Ankara is a member of NATO and a conditional member of the collective West.

It seeks to expand its sphere of influence in adjacent regions, including the Black Sea basin, Transcaucasia and Ukraine.

At the same time, relations with Russia are too important for Turkey, so Erdogan’s policy is completely logical, ”Vladimir Batyuk, a political scientist and chief researcher at the Institute for the USA and Canada, explained in a conversation with RT.

Intermediary Candidates

Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett tried to act as another candidate for the role of mediator between Ukraine and Russia.

On March 5, he held talks in the Kremlin with Vladimir Putin, and then spoke with Vladimir Zelensky.

According to Fox News, Bennett's office claimed that his meeting with President Putin took place "with the blessing of the US administration."

In addition, Israel coordinated its actions with Germany and France.

In turn, the Kremlin informed that Putin and Bennett discussed "various aspects of the situation in Ukraine in the context of Russia's special military operation to protect Donbass."

The leaders of the two countries resumed cooperation on Ukrainian issues on Sunday, March 6.

“A thorough exchange of views was continued on the situation in connection with the Russian-led special military operation to protect Donbass, including taking into account Naftali Bennett’s most recent contacts with the leaders of a number of states,” the Kremlin’s press service said in a statement.

Recall that two rounds of direct negotiations have already taken place between Russia and Ukraine.

The first was held on February 28, the second on March 3.

Both meetings were held on Belarusian territory.

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Despite the fact that the Kremlin spoke about the mutual understanding reached at these meetings on humanitarian issues, Moscow stated that the Ukrainian side was deliberately delaying the process in order to regroup its military forces and assets.

Analysts draw attention to the fact that the leaders of a number of countries, offering themselves as intermediaries in the dialogue between Russia and Ukraine, ignore the fact that the Kiev authorities are in principle not ready to fulfill the conditions that have already been or may be put forward within any negotiation formats.

“Moscow has made it clear that the problem is not the lack of suitable mediators and not that the Russian side allegedly cannot make contact or is having difficulty finding a common language.

The problem is that the conditions that Russia put forward must be met.

And until this is done, there will be no difference whether there are mediators in the negotiations or not, ”said Vladimir Olenchenko, senior researcher at the Center for European Studies at IMEMO RAS, in an interview with RT.

In addition, the Russian leadership has repeatedly emphasized that the operation in Ukraine will continue until the set goals are fully achieved, Olenchenko recalled.

In turn, Vladimir Batyuk added that politicians who are trying to organize a parallel negotiation process under their patronage are counting on the fact that this will create a reputation for peacemakers and help them in their political activities at home.

“They are, of course, pursuing their own political interests.

In addition, they want to avoid a deterioration in relations with Russia, to maintain the trade turnover of their countries with the Russian Federation, while not becoming the object of any sanctions or restrictions from the United States.

For this reason, such an intermediary line is being built, which they adhere to, ”Batiuk explained.

At the same time, he doubted that the resolution of the situation could somehow depend on the individual diplomatic efforts of the leaders of individual countries.

“The main problem that Russia faces in the negotiations is not the lack of mediators, but the inability to negotiate the current Kiev regime,” Batyuk concluded.