Zelenskyy's Office explains why negotiations with Putin are impossible today
Photo: Mykhailo Podolyak, Advisor to the Head of the Office of the President (Vitalii Nosach, RBC-Ukraine)
There are currently at least three solid reasons why any negotiations with Vladimir Putin are impossible at this time. The primary reason is the lack of trust in the Russians, according to Mykhailo Podolyak, advisor to the head of the Office of the President.
Inability to trust the Russians
According to Podolyak, as far back as 1928, the Litvinov Pact was signed at the initiative of the Kremlin, which stipulated the renunciation of war as a tool of state policy.
Since then, the USSR and its successor, the Russian Federation, have initiated dozens of wars and violated hundreds of agreements, including the 1994 Budapest Memorandum and the 2003 Treaty on the Ukrainian-Russian Border.
Impossibility of fair reparations
Ukraine's damages since the start of the war are estimated to range from $700 billion to $1 trillion, according to various assessments. Russia, however, is unable to pay such compensation, which necessitates a mechanism under international control, similar to the one where Iraq paid a percentage of its oil and gas profits to Kuwait, following the Iraqi occupation of 1990–1991.
"But the establishment of such a mechanism is only possible with the cooperation of the government of the aggressor state. In Iraq, this required the removal, arrest, and execution of Saddam Hussein. The conclusion is clear regarding Putin personally," he added.
Impossibility of punishing war criminals
The most significant criminal in Russia is Putin. According to the statute of the International Criminal Court, the head of the Kremlin does not have immunity from prosecution for war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide. This means that he will resist investigations to the end and will not hand over his subordinates.
"All wars eventually come to an end, negotiations begin, and peace treaties are signed. The only obstacle to this is one person. The name of this person is obvious and has already been written in history with much blood," Podolyak wrote.
Negotiations with Russia
It is worth noting that President Volodymyr Zelenskyy supported the decision of the National Security and Defense Council (NSDC) regarding the impossibility of dialogue with Putin. For negotiations to resume, Russia must withdraw its terrorists from Ukrainian territory, change its political elite, acknowledge the crimes committed, and hand over the organizers of the war for a tribunal.
