Moscow does not see the opportunity to stop the war with the help of diplomatic negotiations and expects a protracted conflict, the constant representative of Russia at the UN in Geneva Gennady Gatilov told Financial Times. His words are given by the Russian BBC service.
According to Gatilov, the UN should play a more important role in attempts to put an end to the conflict. The grain agreement, which previously Russia and Ukraine signed with the UN and Turkey and which allowed to unlock three Ukrainian ports, the Permanent Representative of Russia at the UN called the only example of how the organization played a practical role in intermediary attempts.
Gatilov also told FT that Moscow and Kyiv were “very close” to an agreement that could suspend the conflict, in negotiations in April. People who participated in the negotiations refuted this, notes the publication.
According to the Permanent Representative of Russia at the UN, there will be no direct negotiations between Putin and President of Ukraine Vladimir Zelensky. Gatilov also says that he does not see “opportunities for diplomatic contacts.” “The longer the conflict will continue, the more difficult it will be to find a diplomatic solution,” he said ft.
Due to the inability to resume peace negotiations and the ongoing military support of Ukraine by the West, it is quite difficult to predict how long the conflict could last, Gatilov said: “Therefore, they [Kyiv and its Western supporters] will fight to the last Ukrainian.”
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