2024-01-15 13:52:58
The Kremlin: There is no peace in Ukraine without dialogue with Moscow
On Monday, the Kremlin downplayed the importance of holding international meetings to discuss the settlement plan, proposed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. He stressed that “any discussions taking place without the presence of Russia, regarding the so-called peace formula proposed by Kiev, cannot produce tangible results.”
Representatives from 63 countries met on Sunday in Davos, on the sidelines of the annual International Economic Forum, as part of a new round of international discussions on the ideas proposed by Zelensky to settle the conflict in his country. Moscow announced several times in the past its opposition to the Ukrainian plan, which was called the “peace formula,” and saw it as “unrealistic and does not deal with the changes on the ground.” But Moscow did not invite the meetings that focused on discussing mechanisms for implementing this formula.
Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters: “Without our participation, of course, some discussions can be held, but they will remain useless and devoid of prospects for reaching any result.”
He believed that the Davos meeting on Ukraine was “a talk just for the sake of talking.”
Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis delivers a speech during a meeting of national security advisers on Ukraine in Davos on Sunday (AFP)
The presidential spokesman stressed that Moscow “believes that it is better to reach solutions that take into account Russian security requirements through diplomatic means, but in light of the refusal of Western countries and Ukraine to take Russian security demands into account, Russia will continue to implement its own military operation.”
In response to a question regarding whether Russia is ready to enter into international discussions similar to the “Davos” meeting, if it receives the appropriate invitation, Peskov said: “First of all, we should not forget here that Kiev itself imposed an official ban on any negotiations with Moscow. Perhaps the absurdity of the situation is best understood by remembering this prohibition. Therefore, President Vladimir Putin has emphasized our position many times: We prefer to achieve our goals and solve our security problems by peaceful and diplomatic means, but in conditions of absolute impossibility of achieving this, and due to the collective rejection of the countries of the West, and Ukraine’s reluctance to take into account security requirements, we will continue to implement the special military operation, the result of which will We achieve our goals.”
An aerial photo of the devastation resulting from violent battles in the Ukrainian city of Bakhmut last Saturday (Archyde.com)
Bloomberg said that before the start of the International Economic Forum in Davos, a meeting was held on the “peace formula” and “its participants were unable to reach a common position.” She added, “The meeting of national security advisers in Davos ended before the Ukrainian president arrived, without formulating any clear path forward in the discussions.”
A source in the European Union reported that the participants in the meeting on the Ukrainian initiative in Davos had different orientations. While Western partners expressed their “unconditional support” for Kiev, some countries in the Global South “pointed to the need to take Russia’s concerns into account.”
Kiev had expressed its hope that China, Moscow’s largest ally, would join these discussions, and the Ukrainian presidency said that Kiev “continues to extend an invitation to Beijing and hopes that it will participate in a dialogue aimed at bringing peace.”
A Ukrainian soldier carries an artillery shell near the front line on Sunday (Archyde.com)
On the other hand, the Chinese Foreign Ministry stated in a statement that “Beijing may later publish information related to Kiev’s proposal to join the meetings that discuss the peace formula.” She added, “We will continue to interact with the international community and play a constructive role in the political settlement of the conflict… Beijing constantly maintains contacts on this issue with all parties concerned, including with the Kiev authorities.” She stressed that “the main important thing in this area is facilitating the start of peace negotiations.”
In the same context, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Western countries interested in negotiating a settlement of the conflict in Ukraine must first stop arming Kiev.
In an interview with the Russian newspaper “Izvestia”, she commented on the proposal of Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis to involve Russia in discussions of a peace settlement in Ukraine, saying: “They must stop supplying Ukraine with weapons, not impose sanctions once morest Russia, and not make anti-Russian statements.”
Cassis had spoken regarding the necessity of finding a way to involve Russia in the peace process in Ukraine. Because there will be no peace without Russia having its say.
A Russian Beriev A-50 spy plane (Archive: AP)
Field developments
On the ground, Moscow announced, on Monday, that its forces repelled a strong missile attack on the Kursk region, adjacent to the borders with Ukraine and Belarus (northeast of the contact lines). The Ministry of Defense said in a statement that the air defense systems destroyed, over the territory of the Kursk province, three “Tushka-U” missiles. » Launched by Ukrainian forces.
The ministry’s statement said: “Last night, an attempt was repelled by the Kiev regime to carry out a terrorist attack on targets on Russian territory using Tochka-U missiles.” Russian air defense forces on duty in the region were able to destroy these missiles.”
The attack is the strongest in recent days following a series of attacks targeted the border city of Belgorod last week, resulting in human and material losses.
According to military sources, the missile launch was accompanied by an attack launched by Ukrainian air strikes on the town of Tetkino in the Glushkovsky district of Kursk Province, which according to Russian sources led to the injury of one person.
The official “Novosti” agency quoted military sources as saying that Ukrainian air defense capabilities have declined significantly during the recent period. The sources indicated this by the diminished capabilities of the defenses to confront missile strikes and the activity of Russian marches, which in recent weeks have actively targeted infrastructure sites in Kiev and other Ukrainian cities. She believed that the situation shows more and more Kiev’s loss of the ability to confront attacks.
Destroy a spy plane and an airborne command center
On the other hand, Kiev announced, on Monday, that it had destroyed a Russian Beriev A-50 spy plane and an Ilyushin LL-22 airborne command center in the Sea of Azov region, representing a blow to Russian military operations in the south. Ukraine.
Valery Zalogny, Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, wrote on the Telegram messaging app: “The Ukrainian Air Force destroyed an enemy long-range radar detection aircraft (model A-50) and an enemy air surveillance aircraft (model LL-22). ».
The Ukrainian Ministry of Defense estimated the value of the A-50 at $330 million. Kiev’s statements did not explain how the planes were destroyed.
The A-50 entered service for the first time near the end of the Soviet era. It is a large airborne early warning and control unit that can scan an area for several hundred kilometers in search of enemy aircraft, ships and missiles.
Some Russian military bloggers said that shooting down the plane would constitute a huge loss for the Russian Air Force, given that there are a limited number of aircraft in service.
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