During a telephone conversation with Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan on March 17, the Russian dictator dictated his demands for a ceasefire in Ukraine. Putin does not want to hold direct talks with President Vladimir Zelensky until they are “resolved.”
Erdogan’s spokesman Ibrahim Kalin said this in an interview with Hürriyet, quoted by CNN.
During a conversation with the Kremlin leader, the Turkish president offered to organize a meeting between Zelensky and Putin in his country. However, the latter set out his set of demands, “which must be resolved in Istanbul or Ankara before any leadership talks.”
These requirements are:
1. neutrality of Ukraine, refusal of NATO membership;
2. disarmament and guarantees of mutual security in the context of the Austrian model;
3. “Denazification” – baseless and false accusations against Ukrainians, which Putin called the motivation for a full-scale Russian invasion;
4. removing obstacles to the widespread use of the Russian language in Ukraine;
5. recognition of the legitimacy of Russia’s occupation of Crimea;
6. recognition of self-proclaimed “L / DNR”.
The latter two points may be unacceptable to Ukraine and the international community, Erdogan’s spokesman said. Kalin also stressed that Erdogan called on Putin to cease fire on a permanent basis.
Source: New Voice