JAKARTA - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday said the signals from peace talks with Russia in Istanbul, Turkey could be called positive, but added they did not dampen the explosions from Russian shells.
In a late-night address, President Zelensky also expressed caution about Russia's pledge to sharply limit military action in some areas, saying Ukraine would not reduce its defense efforts.
Russia and Ukraine have held peace negotiations at an Istanbul palace. President Zelensky said Kyiv saw no reason to believe the words of some Russian representatives.
"We can say that the signals we received from the talks were positive, but they did not dampen the blast of Russian bullets," he said, adding that Ukraine could only trust the tangible outcome of the talks.
Furthermore President Zelensky, despite the promise of the Russian delegation, "the situation is not getting any easier. The Russian army still has significant potential to continue attacks on our country," he said.
"Therefore we are not reducing our defensive efforts," said President Zelensky.
He stressed that for the peace deal to work, Russian troops must leave and there should be no compromise on Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
He also called for tougher sanctions against Russia and ruled out the idea of current punitive measures being lifted, until the war is over and justice has been restored.
As previously reported, positive news came from Istanbul, Turkey where peace talks between Russia and Ukraine were held Tuesday, with Russia pledging to reduce its military operations and Ukraine proposing a neutral status.
"In order to increase mutual trust and create the necessary conditions for further negotiations, achieving the ultimate goal of agreeing and signing (a) agreement, the decision was made to radically, by a large margin, reduce military activity in the direction of Kyiv and Chernihiv," the deputy said. Russian Defense Minister Alexander Fomin in Istanbul.
Meanwhile, the Ukraine proposal at the talks is the most detailed that has been publicly aired by both sides.
Ukrainian negotiators said that under their proposal, Ukraine would agree not to join the alliance or host foreign troop bases, but would have guaranteed security in terms similar to 'Article 5', NATO's collective defense clause.
In this regard, Ukraine identified Israel and NATO members Canada, Poland, and Turkey as countries that could help provide such assurances. Russia, USA, UK, Germany, and Italy can also provide guarantees.
The proposal would include a 15-year consultation period on Russia's annexed Crimea status, and could only take effect in the event of a complete ceasefire, negotiators said.
VOIR éGALEMENT:
As for the fate of the southeastern Donbas region, which Russia demands that Ukraine be handed over to the separatists, it will be set aside for discussion by the Ukrainian and Russian leaders, they added. Any peace deal would require a referendum in Ukraine.
"If we succeed in consolidating these key provisions, then Ukraine will be in a position to actually improve its current status as a non-aligned and non-nuclear state in the form of permanent neutrality," said Ukrainian delegate Oleksander Chaly.
"We will not host foreign military bases on our territory, as well as deploy military contingents on our territory, and we will not enter into military-political alliances," he said. Military exercises will be carried out with the approval of the guarantor countries.
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