Zelenskyy's advisor Podolyak says Ukraine's position unchanged in negotiations with Russia

The advisor of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Mykhailo Podolyak stated that Russia and Ukraine had a discussion on the status of the negotiations as the conflict between both countries has reached day 24. Podolyak stated that Ukraine's position remains unchanged which is a ceasefire, army withdrawal, and considerable security guarantees based on realistic formulas, while Russian assertions are only their requesting positions and that all of their remarks are made to cause friction in the media.

Podolyak also stated that a peace accord between Ukraine and Russia might take anywhere from a few days to a week and a half. He claims that Kyiv wants to nail down a clear strategy for the withdrawal of Russian soldiers from Ukraine in the peace pact. On Wednesday, Podolyak said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin may meet in the coming days.

'Delegations are still defending their views at the discussions'

He also said that the Ukrainian and Russian delegations are still defending their views at the discussions. He also stated that the procedure is not moving as quickly as they would like. The Adviser to the President's Office believes that once an agreement is signed, Russia will have no choice but to begin withdrawing its armed forces from Ukraine immediately, according to the Odesa Journal.

In the meanwhile, the head of the Russian delegation Vladimir Medinsky, claims the two sides are getting closer to an agreement on Ukraine's neutral status. Medinsky said Friday that the sides have narrowed their differences over Ukraine's decision to abandon its NATO ambition in favour of neutral status. One of the important concerns in talks is Ukraine's neutral status and no NATO membership.

Both are on the same page when it comes to Ukraine's demilitarisation

Medinsky went on to say that the two sides are now on the same page when it comes to Ukraine's demilitarisation. While Kyiv wants that Russian-backed separatist territory in Ukraine's east to be reintegrated, Russia thinks that the people of the regions should have a say in their own fate. On February 24, Russia recognised the separatist areas' independence and used their request for military assistance as a pretext for attacking Ukraine.

Image: AP