Posted on 03/22/2025 8:38:35 AM PDT by marshmallow
According to him, 'that's the key issue in the conflict'
NEW YORK, March 22. /TASS/. US Presidential Special Envoy Steve Witkoff stated that the status of Crimea, the Donetsk People's Republic, the Lugansk People's Republic, as well as the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, remains the key issue in the Ukrainian conflict.
"I think the largest issue in that conflict are these so-called four regions - Donbass, Crimea, you know the name Lugansk, and there are two others. They're Russian-speaking. Yep, there have been referendums where the overwhelming majority of the people have indicated that they want to be under Russian rule. Yes, I think that's the key issue in the conflict. So, that's the first thing, that when that gets settled, and we're having very, very positive conversation," Witkoff told US reporter Tucker Carlson in an interview.
According to Witkoff, "no one wants to talk about it."
"That's the elephant in the room. There are constitutional issues within Ukraine as to what they can concede to with regard to giving up territory. The Russians are de facto in control of these territories. The question is, will the world acknowledge that those are Russian territories? Will it end up? Can [Vladimir] Zelensky survive politically, if he acknowledges this, this is the central issue in the conflict," the special envoy added.
The Donetsk People’s Republic, the Lugansk People’s Republic, the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions became part of Russia following referendums held there on September 23-27, 2022. Crimea and Sevastopol became part of the country after a referendum held in March 2014.
They have already been annexed by the Russian Duma and have Russian passports. They aren’t turning those over to Nazi Kiev to continue their language laws, monuments laws etc.
As I recall, it was in Donesk and Lugansk where the war began in 2014 between Zelensky’s forces and the regional militias. It was in 2022 that Russia took over for the militias.
Seems like the area was getting bombed for 10 years and not by Russia
....”Crimea, the Donetsk People’s Republic, the Lugansk People’s Republic, as well as the Zaporozhye and Kherson regions, remains the key issue in the Ukrainian conflict.”....
Of course.
Besides the ludicrous nature of the so-called referenda in the time of war, the city of Zaporizhzhia was not even under Russian control and thus did not take part in the referendum. How then can it be claimed that the oblast voted to join Russia?
A false claim, and even then it was made only about Donetsk and Luhansk, not about Kherson and Zaporizhzhia.
What pure Sh!t. An article stating that regions seized by the Russian military became part of Russia “after referendums”.
And many here feed on this nonsense.
Maybe you’re a nazi. Just saying, you sound like one.
The Russians will want to keep the areas under their control.
However, they’ll want their Euros in European banks back too. They don’t need to get them back all at once.
Be aware that Western intellectual property such as patents in Russia might get follow a similar path (say confiscation) to those Euros.
Russians would be happy to set up naval bases around much of the globe where needy host country citizens could get cheap Russian copies of expensive Western drugs.
Those areas under Russian combat boots are gone.
Trump isn’t getting the Panama Canal back.
Maybe you’re an idiot, you sound like one.
Come on. Comrade Stalin taught us that it isn’t important who votes, its important who counts the votes.
Atlanta and Phoenix proved him right. Why should these elections be treated any differently than a US presidential election?
Check the news. China is transferring ownership of the ports at each end to Deep State operative Blackrock.
Maybe. Better than a nazi.
Maybe.
Ukraine might try to get future plebiscites in certain areas now under Russian boots in exchange for the faster return of Russian funds.
The EU can help Ukraine win those plebiscites.
I don’t really feel like arguing over Ukraine anymore, let Trump do whatever he decides.
No one really gets a decision in this other than Trump.
If he says that is the way it is, then he will cut off Ukraine and that will be the way it is.
I think the GOPe is fearful of this. They somewhat know that Trump deciding in an absolute way that He Doesn’t Care Who Wins As Long As It Stops erases all their anti Russia speeches.
Once again, the Swamp is going to lose this, to the greatest President of our time.
Surprised Vlad didn’t take Odessa, too.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.