The foreign minister of Ukraine, Dmytro Kuleba, on Monday stated that his nation wants “peace” summit within two months at the United Nations.
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The minister stated this in an interview with Associated Press (AP), adding that the Ukrainian government would like to have the “peace” summit by the end of February and would like the Secretary-General Antonio Guterres as mediator.
“He has proven himself to be an efficient mediator and an efficient negotiator, and most importantly, as a man of principle and integrity. So we would welcome his active participation,” Kuleba said about Guterres.
The U.N. gave a very cautious response.
“As the secretary-general has said many times in the past, he can only mediate if all parties want him to mediate,” U.N. associate spokesperson Florencia Soto Nino-Martinez said Monday.
On Russian participation at the summit, Kuleba said that Russia must face a war-crimes tribunal before his country directly talks with Moscow. He said, however, that other nations should feel free to engage with Russians, as happened before a grain agreement between Turkey and Russia.
Kuleba also said he was “absolutely satisfied” with the results of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to the U.S. last week, and he revealed that the U.S. government had made a special plan to get the Patriot missile battery ready to be operational in the country in less than six months. Usually, the training takes up to a year.
Earlier this month, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky addressed G20 leaders in Indonesia and laid out a ten-point “peace formula,” which includes the restoration of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, the withdrawal of Russian troops, an “all for all” prisoner swap, and a tribunal for those Kiev accuses of aggression.
Russia, meanwhile, has insisted that Kiev must “recognize the reality on the ground” as a prerequisite for any peace negotiations, including the new status of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporozhye as parts of Russia.
Nnamdi Maduakor is a Writer, Investor and Entrepreneur