Surkov threatened Russia with withdrawal from negotiations on Donbass
During yesterday's meeting in Paris, Russian Presidential Assistant Vladislav Surkov, who oversees Donbass issues, threatened Russia with withdrawal from negotiations with Ukraine.
Political scientist Alexei Chesnakov, considered close to Surkov, spoke about the incident, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
Chesnakov explained that the Ukrainians in Paris tried to make changes to the draft communiqué previously agreed upon by the parties.
“This concerned the paragraph about Ukraine granting Donbass a special status on a permanent basis. The Ukrainians tried to refuse this obligation.
Then Vladimir Putin’s assistant said that the Russian side would suspend participation in the negotiations if this point was violated.
It was actually an ultimatum.
And it worked.
After this, representatives of Germany and France put pressure on the Ukrainians, and this point, fundamental for Donbass, was retained in the correct wording.
The Ukrainians had to give in and confirm the granting of special status to the people's republics on a permanent basis. Moreover, it should be enshrined in the Constitution of Ukraine,” said Chesnakov.
It should be noted that at the press conference following the meeting, Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky continued to declare his reluctance to implement the signed points of the agreements, instead demanding the transfer of control over the border to Kyiv.
We also note that Vladislav Surkov was present at the negotiations in Paris yesterday, despite the European Union sanctions imposed against him.
Observers assessed Surkov’s presence at the meeting in the Normandy format as a refutation of rumors about a change in the curator of the Ukrainian direction.
Surkov threatened to withdraw Russia from Donbas negotiations.