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Any peace deal with Russia will depend on the withdrawal of Russian forces to their pre-occupation positions, the Ukrainian president said.
Speaking of an institute in London, Volodymyr Zelensky said this is the minimum his country could accept. However, speaking from Kiev at the Chatham House Institute in London, Zelensky said it could not be doubted that Russia would not hold the occupied territories from the beginning of the aggression.
“To stop the war between Russia and Ukraine, the first step should be the return of the situation from February 23“, He said in response to a question from the BBC, referring to the day before the start of the war.
“I was elected by the people of Ukraine as president of Ukraine, not as president of a mini-Ukraine. This is important to note. “he added.
Even earlier he had claimed that they would also seek Crimea back, Zelensky this time did not mention the peninsula.
The reference to the situation on February 23 suggests that Ukraine may not insist on the recapture of Crimea that was annexed by Russia eight years ago.
Russia is currently fighting for full control of the city of Mariupol. There are still Ukrainian forces along with several civilians at the large Azovstal steel plant in the southeastern city, which has been subjected to a furious Russian attack.
The capture of Mariupol would be Russia’s biggest achievement in the two months of the war and would give Russian President Vladimir Putin something to celebrate on May 9, which is Victory Day in Russia the day the country marks the Soviet victory over the Nazis in World War II.
Zelensky invited German Chancellor Olaf Scholz to visit his country on this very date. The presence of the German leader in Ukraine on the day when Russia commemorates the Soviet sacrifice in World War II would be very symbolic, he said.
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