The Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Sergei Shoigu, at the meeting of representatives of the SCO countries in Kyrgyzstan, reiterated the Kremlin’s unwavering position on ending the war in Ukraine.
According to him, the condition for a diplomatic solution is the return of Kyiv to non-bloc status and the elimination of the original causes of the conflict, while he once again blamed the Western powers for the failure of the negotiations, writes the Russian daily.
During the summit of the secretaries of the security councils of the member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), the former head of the Russian Ministry of Defense, Sergei Shoigu, clearly defined the boundaries within which Moscow intends to operate during possible peace talks. He identified as a key pillar the return of Ukraine to its foundations from the period of independence – that is, to the status of a country without nuclear weapons, which is not part of any military blocs.
According to Shoigu, “sustainable peace” is unattainable unless the fundamental causes that led Russia to launch the so-called special military operation are eliminated. By doing so, he indirectly referred to the expansion of NATO and the security guarantees that Moscow has been demanding for a long time.
Diplomacy versus “failure to agree”
Although the Russian official declared that the Kremlin has never shied away from political-diplomatic solutions and is open to constructive mediation by third parties, he blamed the ongoing fighting on the Ukrainian leadership. Shoigu said in Bishkek that Kyiv has repeatedly demonstrated its inability to comply with agreements.
“Russia does not reject political-diplomatic methods, but the conflict will not end until its primary causes are eliminated,” Shoigu said in front of partners from the SCO countries.
Criticism of the West for supporting Kyiv
A significant part of Shoigu’s speech focused on criticism of Ukraine’s Western allies. According to him, the support from the West is “hypocritical” and has only one goal – deliberately prolonging the armed conflict. For a long time, the Russian side presents the supply of weapons and financial aid to Kyiv as an obstacle to the stabilization of the region.
The current statements of Sergei Shoigu confirm that Russia’s position on the issue of the terms of the ceasefire remains unyielding and that Moscow intends to continue pressuring its neighbor’s neutrality, which is, however, an unacceptable condition for the Ukrainian government for the time being.
