Calls for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine are “pure cynicism” a Kyiv government official claimed Saturday.
Ukraine’s ambassador to Germany, Oleksii Makeiev, has lashed out at suggestions that his country should engage in negotiations with Russia after a number of politicians and trade union officials called for talks to be sought.
Spearheaded by historian Peter Brandt, son of former Chancellor Willy Brandt, numerous officials within the ruling Social Democratic Party (SPD) have called on sitting Chancellor Olaf Scholz to help formulate a peace plan for Ukraine and Russia alongside France, Brazil, China, India and Indonesia.
Brandt’s call for peace has been ridiculed by Makeiev, who attacked any calls for a ceasefire between the warring nations as being a cynical attempt to save Putin from being held accountable for his actions.
“This peace appeal is not an April Fool’s joke,” Die Welt reports the ambassador as saying. “This is pure cynicism towards the numerous victims of Russian aggression.”
He went on to accuse the push for peace negotiations as an attempt to “cover up the crimes of Russia” and its ruling regime, adding that the only way peace could be established is with a full Russian withdrawal.
Makieiev’s denunciation of the call for negotiations is par for the course for Ukrainian officials, who have made a habit of dismissing any suggestion the ongoing conflict in the country could be solved with a negotiated settlement.
So far, the Zelensky government has not appeared too keen to establish a peace deal with Russia, with many within the administration seemingly happy to see the conflict drag on further.
For some in the country, even a full repulsion of the ongoing Russian attack would not be enough to bring about peace, with there being repeated suggestions that the conflict could only end after Ukraine has retaken Crimea, which Russia annexed in 2014.
Some have gone even a step further than that, with Ukrainian National Security and Defence Council Secretary, Oleksiy Danilov, saying there would only be “justice” after Ukrainian troops had somehow taken Moscow.
Secretary of the National Security and Defence Council (NSDC) of Ukraine Oleksiy Danilov sees a push for Moscow as a starting point for peace negotiations with Russia. (Volodymyr Tarasov/ Ukrinform/Future Publishing via Getty Images)
“Our tanks will be on Red Square and that will be justice,” he reportedly said.
Such a position appears to be at odds with Western sentiments, however, with the capacity of European nations to support the Ukrainian war effort seemingly beginning to fade as ammunition caches run dry.
UK Defence Minister Ben Wallace has warned the Ukrainian administration that they need to learn to use munitions sparingly or risk running out, with both the UK and Germany now said to be running extremely low on munitions themselves, endangering both countries’ ability to defend themselves in the event of a larger conflict.