NATO rejected the possibility of a “land for peace” agreement on Ukraine

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg rejected growing calls to force Ukraine to cede territory or renounce NATO membership to allow for a peace deal with Russia. 

According to Politico, NATO Secretary General said in a press conference referring to the previous peace agreements between Moscow and Kiev: “We cannot witness Minsk 3 either. There is no indication that Putin is ready for peace talks.”

Two Minsk agreements were signed in 2014 and 2015 with the participation of Germany and France, with the aim of ending the conflict in the Donbas region of Ukraine. However, two years later and at the same time as Ukraine’s efforts to join NATO increased, the war between the two sides started again.

Allies and advisers of Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump are said to be devising plans to force Kiev to stop returning territories lost during the recent war. These people also plan to convince Ukraine to withdraw its request for membership in NATO so that it can once again make peace with Russia.

Stephen Chong, Trump’s campaign communications director, said on Tuesday: “The top priority in Trump’s second term will be to quickly negotiate an end to the Russia-Ukraine war.” Putin announced the same day that he takes Trump’s proposal “seriously”.

Putin outlined his conditions for ending the war last month. According to his words, “Kiev should recognize Russia’s sovereignty over the four regions of Ukraine that it gained during the war. Also, Ukraine must protect the rights of people of Russian descent, form a new government and limit its military and weapons of war”.

Translator: Zahra Najafi