Latest news with #Umerov
Russia Today
a day ago
- Business
- Russia Today
Russia has ‘fair concern' about NATO expansion
Russia's concerns about NATO expanding to its doorstep are 'fair,' US presidential envoy Keith Kellogg said Thursday in an interview with ABC News, as he discussed Moscow's expected proposal, aimed at resolving the Ukraine conflict. Russia hopes to hold a new round of negotiations with Ukraine on Monday in Istanbul, where both parties would exchange draft memorandums on the next steps in the peace process, including a conditional cease-fire. Ukrainian officials have expressed frustration at not receiving the Russian draft in advance and said they might boycott the meeting. 'I always caution [Kiev's chief negotiator Rustem Umerov]: don't say things like that,' Kellogg said. 'Part of life is showing up, and you need to show you're serious.' ABC's Kyra Phillips cited reports that Moscow wants NATO leaders to issue a written commitment halting further enlargement — particularly the inclusion of Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. Kellogg has acknowledged that Russia's long-standing security concerns regarding the US-led alliance were reasonable. 'We're saying: okay, comprehensively we can stop the expansion of NATO coming close to your border,' he said, adding that such a move would ultimately require a presidential-level decision. During the Cold War, the United States gave the Soviet Union assurances that NATO would not expand eastward in exchange for support for German reunification. Since the 1990s, Russia has cited the alliance's enlargement as evidence of Western duplicity. Moscow has labeled NATO's 2008 promise to eventually admit Ukraine a key factor behind the current conflict. In 2021, the Kremlin offered a diplomatic proposal to ease tensions, but the United States and other NATO members said the organization's open-door policy was non-negotiable. NATO has described Ukraine's path to membership as 'irreversible.' However, US President Donald Trump's administration maintains that Kiev's accession is off the table. Russia and Ukraine reached a preliminary peace agreement in Istanbul in 2022, but Kiev later withdrew from talks, aiming for a military breakthrough with support from Western nations. Moscow sees the renewed talks launched earlier this month as a chance to revisit the proposal, which involves Ukraine adopting a stance of neutrality and limiting its military. Phillips pressed Kellogg on whether those terms were 'pretty extreme,' suggesting they were proof that Russia does not seek peace. Kellogg responded that ending the conflict was in Moscow's interest.
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First Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- First Post
Ukraine 'not opposed to' next Istanbul round after Russia says peace memorandum is ready, but...
After Russia proposed a second round of peace talks in Turkey, Ukraine has laid down its conditions, insisting that it will only participate if the Kremlin sends its agreed peace terms read more Amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, both nations are gearing up for a second round of peace talks in Istanbul, Turkey. Ukraine has maintained that it will participate in the talks, scheduled on Monday, only if the Kremlin produces its promised memorandum of terms for an agreement. The first round of negotiations between the two warring countries took place on May 16 in Istanbul, during which Russia and Ukraine agreed to prepare memoranda detailing their conditions for peace. On Wednesday evening, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov proposed a second round of talks on June 2. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Meanwhile, Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov, who led the delegation in the first round, maintained that the talks are possible only if Russia sends its terms of peace before June 2. The condition from Umerov came after Lavrov said that the Russian side would present its terms during the second round of talks in Istanbul. Ukraine demands promptness In response to Lavrov's assertion, Umrov said that the Ukrainian side has sent its terms to the Kremlin and expects the same kind of promptness from Moscow. 'We are not opposed to further meetings with the Russians and are awaiting their 'memorandum' so that the meeting won't be empty and can truly move us closer to ending the war,' Umerov said in a post on Facebook. 'The Russian side has at least four more days before their departure to provide us with their document for review," he added. It is pertinent to note that Ukraine has repeatedly said that it would agree to an unconditional ceasefire. However, Russia has lengthy discussions addressing what it calls the 'root causes' before any cessation of hostilities. The latest proposal from Moscow came after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed that US President Donald Trump told him during their meeting at the Vatican that the US is ready to impose new sanctions on Russia if Moscow doesn't agree to a ceasefire. 'President Trump supported that if Russia does not stop, there will be sanctions,' Zelenskyy told journalists in a press briefing on Tuesday. 'Our conversation was positive from the point of view that I perceive our conversation as a confirmation of the US policy of imposing strong sanctions against Russia if Russian President Vladimir Putin does not agree to a ceasefire," he added. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Meanwhile, top Putin aide Yuri Ushakov retorted in a TV interview Tuesday that 'we have come to the conclusion that Trump is not sufficiently informed about what is really happening in the context of the Ukrainian-Russian confrontation,' insisting that the Russian strikes were only against military targets and infrastructure. Hence, it will be interesting to see how the second round of talks will pan out.
Russia Today
3 days ago
- Business
- Russia Today
Russia proposes date for next talks with Ukraine
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has proposed holding the next round of negotiations with Ukraine next Monday, June 2, in Istanbul. Kiev is reportedly discussing the offer. Representatives of the two sides met in the same city on May 16, for the first time since 2022. In a statement on Wednesday, Lavrov said that the Russian delegation has since prepared a memorandum outlining its terms for achieving a lasting resolution to the conflict. 'Our delegation headed by [Russia's top negotiator Vladimir] Medinsky is ready to present this memorandum to the Ukrainian delegation and provide necessary clarifications during a second round of resumed direct negotiations in Istanbul next Monday, June 2,' the minister detailed. Lavrov expressed hope that 'all those who are sincerely interested in the success of the peace process, and not merely paying lip service to it, will support the new round of Istanbul direct Russia-Ukraine negotiations.' The foreign minister thanked Türkiye, the US and Saudi Arabia for facilitating the dialogue between Moscow and Kiev. He added that as a result of the talks earlier this month, the two sides conducted the largest prisoner swap to date, with Russia and Ukraine each releasing 1,000 individuals. Earlier on Wednesday, Medinsky, who is also a Russian presidential aide, revealed that he had phoned the head of the Ukrainian negotiating team, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov, and offered a concrete date for the next meeting, where the two delegations are expected to exchange their respective memorandums. 'The Ukrainians adjourned to discuss [the offer],' the Russian official said, conjecturing that the 'discussions are apparently still continuing.' 'We are waiting for their confirmation as soon as possible and are ready to meet them in person and start working on the date specified – in the coming days,' Medinsky added, as quoted by the Russian media. Medinsky also refuted reports by multiple Western media outlets that it was Umerov who had called him regarding the memorandum. The publications in questions suggested that Moscow was dragging its feet and had not prepared the memorandum yet. Russia has consistently made it clear that it views the ongoing negotiations as a way to achieve a lasting peace that would address the root causes of the conflict. On Monday, Lavrov stated that Moscow continues to insist on permanent neutrality for Ukraine and non-nuclear status, meaning that it will not be able to join NATO. Initially, Kiev and its European supporters had demanded that any peace talks with Moscow be preceded by an unconditional 30-day cessation of hostilities. The Kremlin rejected such a scenario, arguing that it would be used by Ukraine to regroup its forces. Kiev revised its stance following pressure from the US and agreed to direct negotiations with Moscow.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Ukraine sends ceasefire memo, urges Russia to respond ahead of June 2 peace talks, Umerov says
Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said on May 28 that Kyiv is still awaiting the Russian side's proposed ceasefire memorandum, which was expected following peace talks in Turkey earlier this month. According to Umerov, the international community had anticipated Russia would submit the document promptly after the May 16 negotiations in Istanbul. "Unfortunately, the Russian side attempted to delay this process. But pressure worked," Umerov said in his Facebook post. He credited statements from U.S. President Donald Trump, European leaders, and President Volodymyr Zelensky for compelling Moscow to complete the draft. He noted, however, that Russia continues to withhold delivery of the document. "They received our document," Umerov added, referring to Ukraine's position paper. "We reaffirm Ukraine's readiness for a full and unconditional ceasefire and continued diplomatic engagement." Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov announced the same day that Russia's memorandum, detailing its stance, would be presented by the delegation led by presidential aide Vladimir Medinsky during the next round of negotiations set for June 2 in Istanbul. During a press conference, Lavrov said the two sides had agreed on May 16 to draft documents outlining their respective positions. He added that Russia had "promptly drafted a corresponding memorandum," which includes what he described as steps to address the "root causes of the crisis." Russia's so-called "root causes" include long-standing maximalist demands that Kyiv withdraw from four partially occupied regions, that NATO cease further expansion eastward, and that some sanctions on Moscow be lifted. The memorandum also reportedly addresses the issue of frozen Russian assets and calls for "the protection of Russian-speaking Ukrainians." Moscow has promoted the narrative that Kyiv discriminates against Russian-speaking citizens through its language policies. While Russian is still widely spoken throughout Ukraine, the government has introduced reforms in recent years aimed at strengthening the use of Ukrainian in public life—part of broader efforts to reverse decades of Russification under both Soviet and Russian influence. Umerov also said Ukraine is open to additional meetings but stressed the importance of preparedness to ensure any discussions are productive. "The Russian side has at least four more days (until June 2) before their departure to provide us with their document for review," he said. "We call on them to fulfill that promise without delay and stop trying to turn the meeting into a destructive one. Diplomacy must be substantive, and the next meeting must yield results." Read also: Russia massing 50,000 troops near border of Ukraine's Sumy Oblast, Zelensky says We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Reuters
3 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
Zelenskiy says Ukraine's defence minister had call with Russian negotiator
May 28 (Reuters) - Ukraine's defence minister recently had a call with the head of the Russian delegation in the Istanbul talks, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday, in order to discuss the memorandum Moscow is currently working on laying out its conditions for any peace accord. Defence Minister Rustem Umerov led the Ukrainian delegation to the May 16 talks, the first between the warring nations since spring 2022. The Russian team was led by Vladimir Medinsky. Kyiv and its allies have pushed Russia for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire as a basis for talks to end the conflict, while Moscow says that it has certain conditions which must first be met, and which it has said it will lay out. Zelenskiy, speaking in Berlin, said that Russia was persistently searching for reasons to delay talks to end the war, which has ground on for over three years. "The world has been waiting for more than a week for the Russians to complete their so-called memorandum on what they need to stop the killing of people," he said. The Ukrainian leader said earlier that Kyiv was still waiting for Moscow to produce a memorandum on how it saw the future of peace talks before it could respond. He said Ukraine had contacted the Russian side after the Istanbul talks, in which Russia first said it would produce the memorandum, to ask about the document. "Our side - we were in touch with the Russians. The Minister of Defence called Russia's Medinsky. They said it would happen. But we never got it," Zelenskiy said, adding that the U.S. had not received anything either. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Wednesday Russia was preparing for the next round of negotiations with Ukraine and to continue contacts with the United States. Istanbul could be a venue for the next round of negotiations, Peskov said.
