“It is up to the Ukrainian government to decide under what conditions, when and in what form talks with Russia could be held,” State Department spokesman Christopher Burger said.
“This war was started by Putin and no one else. If Putin wants it, then the war will end tomorrow,” said Foreign Minister Analena Burbok, referring to the prospect of an end to the conflict in Ukraine. Its representative, commenting on the recent statements of Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba regarding the organization of a peace conference under the auspices of the UN, spoke of an issue that “belongs to Kyiv”.
“Any proposal to end Russian military aggression is good and right and the United Nations, in the view of the federal government, has an important role to play in that. It is of course up to the government of Ukraine to decide on the conduct, timing and content of possible negotiations with the Russian Federation for a peaceful solution and an end to Russia’s illegal military aggression against Ukraine,” said State Department spokesman Christopher Burger and he referred to Ms. Burbock’s statement that “if (Vladimir) Putin wants it, the war will end tomorrow.”
Mr. Burger also noted that the situation for civilians in Russian-occupied territories is catastrophic. “People live there every day in fear of kidnapping, torture and murder by the Russian occupation forces. But a ceasefire on Putin’s terms would not end their terror – quite the opposite,” added the German diplomat.
Asked whether it was realistic to hold a peace conference in February, as Ukraine’s foreign minister said, Christopher Burger said Russia “shows no signs of abandoning its original war aims”. The Russian foreign minister “also made it very, very clear that Russia is still working hard to destroy the statehood of Ukraine. We have to take this into account. This is also the reason why our support for Ukraine’s right to self-defense remains undiminished,” said Mr. Burger characteristically and noted that Germany has long been providing diplomatic support through various channels, in order to promote some issues that the Ukraine would like to face as part of a peace formula. “It is, for example, on the issue of accountability, i.e. holding accountable those responsible for war crimes. From our perspective, there is certainly broad international support for continued work on this issue. The same also applies to the export of grain and to many of the issues that Kyiv would like to be included in the agenda”, explained the representative of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and concluded by underlining that “it is up to the Ukrainian government to decide under what conditions, when and with in what form talks with Russia could be held.”
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With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
