Putin Agrees For Conditional Ceasefire In Ukraine, Kyiv Takes A Pass

Ukraine War Ceasefire: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday put forth what he called prerequisites for the commencement of peace talks with Ukraine. He said Moscow would be ready for such talks "tomorrow" if Ukrainian forces withdraw from the Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Donetsk and Luhansk regions and if Ukraine abandons its plans to join NATO.

The four regions listed by Putin were unilaterally annexed by Russia via simultaneous and questionable referendums in 2022. Putin set out the series of conditions at a press conference held on the eve of a peace conference in Switzerland to which Russia has not been invited.

Ukraine War: Russia's Conditions For Ceasefire

"As soon as they declare in Kyiv that they are ready for such a decision and begin a real withdrawal of troops from these regions, and also officially announce the abandonment of their plans to join NATO - on our side, immediately, literally at the same minute, an order will follow to cease fire and begin negotiations," Vladimir Putin said.

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"I repeat, we will do this immediately. Naturally, we will simultaneously guarantee the unhindered and safe withdrawal of Ukrainian units and formations," the Russian President stated. Russia controls nearly a fifth of Ukrainian territory as the war in Ukraine runs through its third year. Kyiv says peace can only be based on a full withdrawal of Russian forces and the restoration of Ukraine's territorial integrity.

Ukraine Responds To Putin's Proposal

Responding to the conditions laid out by Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's advisor Mykhailo Podolyak dismissed the proposal and said it was not a serious attempt to
agree on peace and had no relevance to any negotiations. He told Reuters that there is "no possibility to find compromise" between Putin's statement and Ukraine's conditions for ending the war launched by Russia.

US-Ukraine Security Deal: Step Towards NATO Membership

Vladimir Putin's latest statement came just hours after US President Joe Biden and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement. The deal, signed on the sidelines of the ongoing G7 summit in Italy, aims to commit future US administrations to support Ukraine in its defence against invading Russian forces, officials said.

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"Our goal is to strengthen Ukraine's credible defense and deterrence capabilities for the long term," Biden said at a joint news conference with Zelenskyy. The US-Ukraine security deal is a framework for a long-term effort to help develop the outdated Ukrainian armed forces and serve as a step towards Ukraine's eventual NATO membership, according to the text.

(With inputs from Reuters)