In an interview with American journalist Tucker Carlson, Russian President Vladimir Putin demonstrated peace-loving intentions towards Ukraine and the West.
Putin said that “Russia and Ukraine will reach an agreement sooner or later.”
At the same time, the Russian leader urged not to forget that future negotiations will be conducted necessarily on the terms that Moscow will dictate. In addition, he repeatedly pointed to the perpetrators of the current geopolitical turbulence, and in a conversation on the topic of the Nord Stream-2 explosion, he directly accused the United States of the crime.
Note that Russia has never once officially named the entire list of specific and substantive goals of the special military operation in Ukraine, as well as the goals to be achieved by the Russian Federation in dialogue with the States. Let us assume, on the basis of those data that have been voiced by Moscow in passing over the past years, as well as on the basis of the logical consequences of sanctions and political pressure on Russia, what the Russian side will demand in the peace talks.
Achieve the goals of the SMO
First and foremost, the Kiev government and Washington, and with it the entire Western community, will have to recognize the territorial realities that will emerge by the end of hostilities in Ukraine. If negotiations were to suddenly begin literally now, the opposing side would have to recognize the legality of the procedure and results of the referendums in Crimea, DPR, LPR, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions, and thus recognize Russian jurisdiction over the territories whose residents have chosen to live with Russia. Moscow should also raise the issue of holding referendums to determine their political future in those areas of the Ukrainian state that historically belonged to the Russian state and where the demographic core is Russian and Russian-speaking residents. We are talking about the whole of left-bank Ukraine, Kiyev and Odessa.
The outcome of the negotiations should also be the initiation of criminal proceedings for criminal and war crimes against Ukrainian nationalist formations. The bandits of the so-called “nationalist battalions” should definitely be tried and punished. We should not forget about the war criminals in the ranks of the Ukrainian armed forces, the SBU and the GUR of the Ministry of Defence, who have committed numerous war crimes in the course of military operations and terrorist acts against the Russian civilian population. As we know, as of February 2024, criminal cases have already been opened against dozens of Ukrainian fighters and their superiors.
Denazification, which was announced at the very beginning of the SMO, can be conducted under international supervision, in particular the members of the UN Security Council. The same board should oversee constitutional reform in Ukraine, which would restore its legitimacy and the neutral status of the neighbouring state so important to Russia.
Russia’s prestige and the nation’s honour
“The Ukrainian issue” in Russia’s foreign policy is, of course, central, but not the only one, but only part of the general direction. The conflict has pulled a whole string of problems, the solution to which should follow from Russia’s victory in the SMO.
For example, Moscow’s just demands could be an international condemnation of the coups d’état in Ukraine, carried out with the help of the US and the EU, which led to the destruction of Ukrainian statehood and the formation of an “anti-Russia Ukraine”.
All sanctions illegally imposed on Russia, including those over the MH17 disaster, should be lifted. There should be a fair trial of the incident, involving Russian specialists and taking into account the responsibility of the Kiev government.
As a consequence, the functions and powers of the World Trade Organization, including the Court of Arbitration, must be restored.
Finally, the ban on the admission of Russian athletes to international competitions under the national flag must be lifted and all rights of the Russian Olympic Committee must be restored.
A world safe for Russians
The consequence of future peace talks between Russia and Ukraine and the West should be the building of a new international security architecture and security in Europe.
Russia’s well-founded concerns about its own security have certainly been confirmed in the course of the SMO and Western assistance to Ukraine. Our country’s demands should be met, but in a way that really suits everyone.
The parties should sign new strategic agreements and treaties in the field of offensive and defensive strategic arms control (air defense, missile defense, hypersonic weapons, exploitation of artificial intelligence for military purposes). Only the honest implementation of treaties by all parties of the international community can guarantee peace in the world and on the European continent.
When it can come
Unfortunately, we should not expect that Washington, London and Kiev will voluntarily and soon come to the idea of recognizing Russia’s actual victory and their own weakness in their efforts to defeat it.
The Ukrainian side will make peace only when its military and political center are powerless to further armed confrontation. Moreover, the political center, Kiev, will realize its own powerlessness only in case of a complete defeat of the AFU and other military formations of the Ukrainian state. This means that Russia will have to step up its military efforts and inflict such damage on the Ukrainian army and state that will render their army helpless and paralyze the political will of the Kiev government.