Brazil says Ukraine should cede Crimea to Russia to end war, Kyiv says no

Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva suggested that Ukraine should be open to the idea of giving up Crimea in exchange for peace with Russia.

“(The Russian President Vladimir Putin) cannot seize the territory of Ukraine. But perhaps we can discuss Crimea. (President Volodymyr Zelensky) cannot want everything… the world needs to calm down," Lula told the media on April 6, Le Figaro reports.

Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson said, “Ukraine does not give up its territories.”

Brazil’s president has so far refused to condemn Russia’s invasion or provide arms to Ukraine, instead positioning himself as a mediator.

Lula’s top foreign policy advisor met Putin on March 30 in Moscow to talk about potential peace negotiations with Ukraine. Zelensky also held a call with Lula on March 2, discussing diplomatic means of ending the war.

The deputy head of the President's Office Andrii Sybiha recently brought up the issue of Crimea in an interview with the Financial Times. He suggested that once the Ukrainian forces reach the administrative border with Crimea, Kyiv might be ready to discuss the peninsula’s future.

However, President's Office advisor Mykhailo Podolyak soon after denied the possibility of any negotiations with Russia on the issue of Crimea.