Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on June 14 rejected Russian dictator Vladimir Putin's conditions for peace talks, comparing them to Adolf Hitler's invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1938-1939.
Putin said earlier on June 14 that, as a condition for peace negotiations, Ukrainian troops must leave Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts. He added that Ukraine must recognize Russia's illegal annexation of the regions and abandon any ambition to join NATO.
Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia oblasts are partially controlled by Russian troops. Russia claims to have annexed the whole territory of those regions despite not controlling two regional capitals - Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
Speaking to Italy's SkyTG24 news channel at the G7 summit on June 14, Zelensky said that "these messages are ultimatums, and they are no different from any other ultimatums he made in the past."
"What he's doing is a revival of Nazism," Zelensky said. "...He wants us to renounce our occupied territories but he also wants our unoccupied territories. He... doesn't intend to stop, and there will be no frozen conflict."
Zelensky also compared Putin's ultimatum to Hitler's demand for annexing Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland in 1938, when he claimed that he would not go further.
Mykhailo Podolyak, an advisor to Zelensky's chief of staff, said in a post on X that the proposal was "highly offensive to international law and speaks eloquently about the incapacity of the current Russian leadership to adequately assess reality."
He added the demands effectively amounted to "give us your territories.. give up your sovereignty… leave yourselves unprotected."
"It's all a complete sham," he added.
Putin declared the illegal annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia Oblasts in September 2022. Moscow also controls all of Ukraine's Crimean peninsula.
A Ukrainian counteroffensive just weeks later liberated great swathes of the territory claimed by Russia. As of May 3, Russia was in control of around 18% of Ukrainian territory.
"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," Putin said when making his ceasefire demands.
"I repeat, we will do this immediately. Naturally, we will simultaneously guarantee the unhindered and safe withdrawal of Ukrainian units and formations," he said.
Ukraine has insisted a full withdrawal of Russian troops from all Ukrainian territory is necessary for peace negotiations to begin.
Chris York
(Updated: )
