Ukraine rejects ceasefire and makes final demands on Russia

Created: 05/21/2022, 18:45

By: Andreas Schmid

A diplomatic solution is a long way off in the Ukraine-Russia talks.

A Ukrainian government official is now making it clear what his country is demanding.

News ticker.

• Ukraine negotiations

  : Ukraine rejects a ceasefire with Russia and makes a final demand.

• Putin soon forced to Ukraine talks?

  Military expert sees “game changer”

• Reconstruction of Ukraine:

  EU Commission President von der Leyen brings up reforms in return.

• This news ticker has ended.

  Read the new ticker on Ukraine-Russia negotiations and war diplomacy by clicking on the link.

Update from May 19, 10:37 a.m

.: EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has proposed linking future reconstruction aid for Ukraine to reforms.

"We will have to help finance the reconstruction of Ukraine anyway," said von der Leyen on Thursday on the ZDF program "maybrit illner".

Then, in her view, it makes sense to say: “Yes to investments, but right away with the necessary reforms, for example against corruption or for example for establishing the rule of law.

Ukraine wants that too, I discussed it again this morning with President Zelenskyy.”

According to von der Leyen, Ukraine wants to join the European Union at any price, so there is a lot of motivation for the upcoming accession process.

Will there soon be a referendum on proclaiming a people's republic in Cherson?

Update from May 19, 2:55 p.m

.: Moscow has recently shown its determination to tie the occupied Cherson region to itself.

The region in southern Ukraine will have a "worthy place in our Russian family," said Deputy Prime Minister Marat Chusnullin on Tuesday (May 17).

The Ria Novosti agency quoted him as saying that they would live and work together in the future.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov now emphasized that the will of the people there was decisive.

"Nothing can be done without them determining how and with whom they should continue to live," he was quoted as saying by the Interfax agency.

Kyiv has long been counting on the possibility of a referendum in Kherson on the proclamation of a people's republic based on the model of the pro-Russian separatist regions of Luhansk and Donetsk.

Russian President Vladimir Putin recognized Luhansk and Donetsk as independent states shortly before the start of the Ukraine war.

In his speech on February 24, Putin said that Russia does not want to occupy Ukrainian territories, but will check how people react.

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On May 1, Moscow introduced the Russian ruble as official currency in the Cherson region.

The deputy chief of the pro-Russian administration in Kherson, Kirill Stremousov, recently brought up a formal application to Putin for membership.

Kyiv, on the other hand, is convinced that a Russification of the Cherson region will fail.

Negotiations in the Ukraine war: Kyiv demands EU candidate status

Update from May 19, 2:01 p.m

.: The Ukrainian Foreign Minister is apparently dissatisfied with relations with some EU countries.

The background: the desire for his country to join the EU soon.

"We don't need substitute EU candidate status funds that show Ukraine's second-rate treatment and hurt Ukrainians' feelings," Dmytro Kuleba tweeted.

The ambiguity about Kiev's EU prospects that has been pursued up to now by "some EU capitals" has only encouraged Vladimir Putin, Kuleba wrote, referring to the Ukraine war.

Dmytro Kuleba, Foreign Minister of Ukraine © Marcus Brandt/dpa-Pool/dpa

Ukraine war negotiations: Moscow expects high revenues even with EU oil embargo

Update from May 19, 1:19 p.m

.: Despite the sanctions from the West, Moscow is unconcerned: the country is still expecting bubbling income from energy sales even with an EU oil embargo.

That said Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Nowak this Thursday at a political discussion forum.

After the US oil embargo, the export volumes have now been restored, according to Nowak.

In the future, the EU will have to get the oil it has bought from Russia from elsewhere.

Russia will direct its oil to those markets from where the EU states would buy it more expensively, Nowak said.

The Russian government has repeatedly described the sanctions as ineffective or rather harmful to the economy in the EU and the USA.

"In the end we have the same result, just with the destruction of the historical connections and the associated supply chains," says Nowak.

The raw materials superpower Russia is already benefiting greatly from the high energy prices.

Ukraine-Russia negotiations: EU agrees on mandatory gas reserves

Update from May 19, 12:14 p.m .:

In order to secure the energy supply in the EU, gas storage tanks must be filled to a minimum before winter.

Representatives of the EU states and the European Parliament agreed on a corresponding law.

It stipulates that the gas storage facilities will be 80 percent full by November 1, 2022, and 90 percent by November 1, 2023.

The obligation is scheduled to expire at the end of 2025.

The EU Commission proposed the law in March to secure gas supplies in the face of the Ukraine war and to curb price fluctuations.

The EU has resolved to get rid of Russian energy supplies as quickly as possible.

A new gas storage law has been in force in Germany since April 30, according to which storage facilities must be 90 percent full by November 1 of this year.

Speech on the Ukraine war: Ex-President George W. Bush makes an embarrassing slip of the tongue

Update from May 19, 11:12 a.m .:

Former US President George W. Bush made an embarrassing slip of the tongue in a speech on the Ukraine war.

At an event in Dallas, the 75-year-old spoke about Putin and "one man's decision to launch a totally unwarranted and brutal invasion of Iraq."

Then he immediately corrected himself: "I mean: to the Ukraine." When Bush noticed the irritation in the audience, he added, alluding to his age: "75".

A picture from another era: Russia's President Vladimir Putin (l.) with ex-Chancellor Angela Merkel and ex-US President George W. Bush at the G8 summit in Heiligendamm in 2007. © REGIERUNGonline/Plambeck /AFP

After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, a few months after Bush took office, the United States launched a “war on terror”.

The 2003 war in Iraq followed the invasion of Afghanistan.

The war against Iraq was justified by alleged weapons of mass destruction owned by the ruler Saddam Hussein, which were never found. 

Ukraine-Russia negotiations: Ukraine rejects ceasefire and makes final demand

Update from May 19, 10:10 a.m .:

In the negotiations with Russia to end the conflict, Ukraine only accepts the complete withdrawal of Russia from the entire country.

Mykhailo Podoliak, a close advisor to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, has now made this clear on Twitter.

"Until Russia is ready to fully liberate occupied territories, our negotiating team consists of arms, sanctions and money," the presidential aide announced.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy does not want to cede the occupied territories of Ukraine to Russia.

© Imago

A ceasefire is not an option.

"Ukraine is not interested in the new Minsk and renewed war in a few years," Podoliak said.

The top Ukrainian politician is alluding to the Minsk peace agreement, which was concluded after Russia annexed the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in 2014, which resulted in a fragile ceasefire and became completely obsolete with the Ukraine war.

Ukraine-Russia negotiations: High-ranking Russian politician visits occupied territory - and makes outrageous demand

Update from May 19, 7

a.m.: As the highest-ranking politician from Moscow to date, Deputy Prime Minister Marat Chusnullin visited the partially conquered Zaporizhia region in southeastern Ukraine.

The perspective of the region lies in "working in our harmonious Russian family," he said in the small town of Melitopol.

The regional capital of Zaporizhia is still in Ukrainian hands.

Chusnullin's demand that Ukraine should pay for electricity from the Zaporizhia nuclear power plant, which was occupied by Russian troops, caused particular outrage in Kyiv.

In Cherson, too, the occupying power is looking for a way to join the area to Russia.

After the US announced plans to reopen its embassy in Kyiv, the Senate confirmed career diplomat Bridget Brink as ambassador to Ukraine.

The Chamber of Congress approved the personnel on Wednesday (local time) in Washington.

The State Department had previously announced that the US embassy in the Ukrainian capital, which was closed due to the Russian war of aggression, will resume operations.

US occupy embassy in Kyiv - work officially resumed

Update from May 18, 9:08 p.m .:

The USA has reopened its embassy in the Ukrainian capital Kiev after three months of closure.

"We are officially resuming work at the US Embassy in Kyiv today," said US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Wednesday.

The US flag was hoisted again at the embassy building.

"The people of Ukraine, with our security support, defended their homeland against the ruthless Russian invasion, and as a result, the Stars and Stripes (the US national flag) again flies over the embassy," Blinken said.

Washington had closed its embassy in Kyiv ten days before the start of the February 24 Russian attack on Ukraine, temporarily relocating embassy activities first to the western Ukrainian city of Lviv and then to Poland.

After Ukrainian forces repelled a Russian offensive on the capital and its region, Western countries are gradually reopening their diplomatic missions in Kyiv.

Update from May 18, 4 p.m.:

Russia expels other European diplomats.

34 French and 27 Spanish diplomats are expelled from the country.

With regard to France, Russia's Foreign Ministry spoke of a response to the "provocative and unjustified decision" from Paris, where 41 Russian embassy employees were expelled in April.

27 Russian diplomats had previously been expelled from Spain.

Since the start of the Ukraine war, there have been numerous expulsions of diplomats.

In Germany, for example, 40 Russians with diplomatic status were expelled.

Moscow reacted inversely by expelling 40 German embassy employees.

Vladimir Putin (r) is the driving force in the Ukraine war (archive photo).

© Alexander Zemlianichenko/dpa

Ukraine negotiations: Putin soon forced to Ukraine negotiations?

Military expert sees “game changer”

Update from May 18, 2:30 p.m .:

Negotiations in the Ukraine war are stalling.

There have recently been talks regarding the liberation of Ukrainian soldiers from the Asovstal steelworks in Mariupol.

To date, however, there have been no concrete, result-oriented negotiations on an end to the war.

The security expert Carlo Masala cannot understand that.

In an interview with ntv, the professor at the University of the Federal Armed Forces in Munich speaks of a "game changer" due to Western arms deliveries.

"As a Russian, you should be afraid," Masala said, referring to the delivery of heavy weapons.

"Last week, two Russian BTG (

)

destroyed trying to cross a river.

This happened entirely with American artillery.

This is a game changer from the Ukrainian perspective, but also from the Russian perspective.”

Russia must therefore slowly go to the negotiating table, says the military expert.

"When the Russians are pushed back to the old contact line from before February 24 (

) and there is a risk that they will lose even more territory, then the point has come where they should go to the negotiating table." However, Russia currently has more of the Ukrainian territory under its control - "of course they want to keep that".

Ukraine negotiations: Von der Leyen wants to provide up to nine billion euros

First report from May 18, 1 p.m.:

Brussels – Ukraine is to be supported with EU funds.

Ursula von der Leyen promised Ukraine up to nine billion euros in emergency aid.

The President of the EU Commission is proposing a “new one-off macro financial aid for Ukraine of up to nine billion euros” this year, said von der Leyen in Brussels on Wednesday.

The funds are intended to help cover the country's acute financial needs in the Ukraine war.

Ukraine is not part of the EU, but aspires to membership.

Ursula von der Leyen (CDU), President of the European Commission, pledges more financial support to Ukraine.

© Jean-Francois Badias/dpa

Ukraine war and the aftermath - Von der Leyen: Maintaining momentum of increased military spending

According to EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, more money should continue to be invested in the military in the European Union.

In view of the Russian war against Ukraine, the EU states have already announced additional spending of 200 billion euros for the next few years, she said in Brussels on Wednesday.

"We need to keep that momentum going." The return of war to Europe has highlighted the impact of years of under-spending on defense.

"We've basically lost a decade of defense investment because of all these cuts," she said.

It is now important to agree that the money will be spent in such a way that gaps that "obviously" exist in the EU and NATO are closed.

It's also important to get equipment together.

In addition, she will present a legislative proposal in the fall, according to which purchases that are jointly procured by the EU states should be exempt from VAT.