war in Ukraine
Kyiv hints at negotiations over Crimea
Russia annexed the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in 2014 – the picture shows the port city of Sevastopol behind the Soviet monument “Soldier and Sailor”. photo
© Ulf Mauder/dpa
Ukraine wants back the Crimea annexed by Russia – and does not rule out military conquest. Under certain circumstances, however, one is also ready for a diplomatic solution.
According to its own statements, the Ukrainian leadership is ready for talks with Russia about Crimea after a planned spring offensive. “If we achieve our strategic goals on the battlefield and get to the administrative borders of Crimea, we are ready to open the diplomatic side and discuss the matter,” deputy head of the presidential office in Kyiv Andriy Sybiha told the Financial times”.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy had previously rejected negotiations with Moscow as long as Russian soldiers are still on Ukrainian territory – including the Crimean Peninsula, which Russia annexed in 2014.
Sybiha’s comments are Kiev’s first diplomatic thrust since the ceasefire negotiations broke off a year ago, shortly after Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine began, the newspaper wrote. Military experts are expecting an offensive by Ukrainian troops this spring to recapture areas occupied by Russians. The most likely direction is an approach in the south of the country towards the coast in order to drive a wedge between the Russian troops stationed there. However, it is unclear whether the weapons supplied to Kiev by the West will be sufficient to ensure the success of such an operation.
Military conquest of Crimea not excluded
According to Sybiha, Kiev does not rule out a military conquest of Crimea. The advisor to the presidential office, Mykhailo Podoliak, also made it clear that the talks were not about territorial concessions. “Real negotiations” with Moscow can only take place after the complete withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory, including Crimea, he insisted on Kiev’s well-known position.
However, Western military experts fear that attempts to conquer Crimea could lead to a significant escalation of the war and could even provoke Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin to use nuclear weapons, since Moscow regards the strategically important peninsula as its own territory. The nuclear power had always emphasized that it would defend Crimea with all the means at its disposal.