There have been several rounds of peace talks to halt the Russian invasion of Ukraine (2022–present) and end the Russo-Ukrainian War (2014–present) in an armistice. The first meeting was held four days after the start of the invasion, on 28 February 2022, in Belarus. It concluded without result, with delegations from both sides returning to their capitals for consultations. A second and third round of talks took place on 3 and 7 March 2022, on the Belarus–Ukraine border, in an undisclosed location in the Gomel region of Belarus. A fourth and fifth round of talks were respectively held on 10 and 14 March in Antalya, Turkey.
During a series of meetings, by the end of March Russia and Ukraine negotiators produced the Istanbul Communiqué, “Key Provisions of the Treaty on Ukraine’s Security Guarantees” - a framework of a possible agreement. The agreement would have declared Ukraine to be a neutral state, put a limit on its military, and list Russia and Western countries, including the US and the UK, as guarantors, obliged to assist Ukraine in case of aggression against it. The talks almost reached agreement, with both sides “consider[ing] far-reaching concessions”, but stopped in May 2022 due to a combination of several factors.
Peace talks and the stability of international borders were further discussed in the Ukrainian parliament during the week of 9 May 2022. Following the 2022 Ukrainian eastern counteroffensive, Russia renewed calls for peace talks, with the sources from the Russian government reporting that Russia is not truly committed to peace and is simply stalling for time while its forces trained and replenished for a future advance.
https://x.com/glenn_diesen/status/1833138756779438264?s=61&t=BspBEkX2hzhEXXxbQreKxg
Victoria Nuland confirms the US and UK “advised” Ukraine to abandon the Istanbul peace agreement as it placed limitations on weapon systems in Ukraine
- The mediators (Israel & Turkey) argued the US pressured Zelensky to abandon the peace agreement as the US saw an opportunity to use Ukrainians to weaken a strategic rival.
So there was a framework and not an agreement. So the US and the UK advised. This is not the same as them blocking an agreement. I too would have advised the same because Russia was demanding an unjust peace. If this were about Russian security and NATO expansion then Russia could have had a deal since Zelensky agreed to no NATO membership. Putin turned it down because, as his own chief envoy to Ukraine admitted, he wanted Ukrainian land. Putin himself has recently stated that his primary goal is gaining Donbas. Even today Putin could have a neutral Ukraine if he just left Ukraine. Indeed, as long as he held Crimea and eastern Donbas Ukraine was blocked from joining NATO by its own rules. The only ones for whom this is a surrogate war are those isolationists who believe abandoning Ukraine is somehow a blow against Soros and the NWO. Stop justifying Russian aggression.