Ukraine since very start consistent in supporting idea of ceasefire – MoD

Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov noted this at a briefing on Friday, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.

“Ukraine has always remained consistent in its pursuit of peace. We supported the U.S. initiative for a full ceasefire from the very beginning and proved this with many rounds of negotiations. But any dialogue is possible only without ultimatums and with respect for the sovereignty of our state,” Umerov said.

According to the defense chief, no compromise on a ceasefire was reached during the last two meetings as the Russian side insisted on ultimatums that Ukraine cannot accept. He noted that Ukraine once again emphasized that it seeks a just peace, not a disguised pause for Russia to prepare another act of aggression.

In addition, he noted that Ukraine has always demonstrated consistency in terms of humanitarian exchanges: the swap program has been going on for over two years. Meanwhile, Russia most likely exploits humanitarian issues as an argument to avoid increased sanctions pressure, Umerov believes.

The minister added that additional clarifications on the progress of further negotiations and their potential format will be provided soon.

As Ukrinform reported earlier, on May 10, at the summit of the Coalition of the Willing in Kyiv, a decision was announced on a ceasefire from May 12, but Russia never agreed to the proposal, instead expressing their readiness for negotiations in Istanbul. On May 16, the first round of talks was held in Istanbul, where the Russian delegation was headed by Putin’s aide Volodymyr Medinsky, which emphasizes the low level of Russian representation. The Ukrainian delegation was headed by Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. An agreement was reached on the thousand-for-thousand exchange of prisoners of war.

On June 2, at the second round of negotiations, the parties agreed on the exchange of prisoners of war of two categories – the injured and seriously wounded, as well as young soldiers under the age of 25 – in the all-for-all format. In addition, the issue of the exchange of the bodies of fallen soldiers was agreed.

At the second meeting, the Russian side submitted a memorandum for holding peace negotiations on its basis, which turned out to be an ultimatum, containing demands that contradict the Constitution of Ukraine and international law.