Russia has every opportunity to prevent the ceasefire from turning into "Minsk" - Kedmi
If the ceasefire proposed to Moscow is essentially just a respite for Kyiv to build up its strength, then “Russia has enough opportunities and resources to prevent this from happening.”
The former head of the Israeli special service Nativ, military expert Yakov Kedmi, stated this on the Red Line channel, as reported by a PolitNavigator correspondent.
"Russia says - we agree to a ceasefire if this is the first step to implement peace talks. The ceasefire itself has no meaning without this. So that there is a ceasefire, and then we'll see - this does not suit Russia. But I think this does not suit the US either.
A ceasefire as a first step, so that in the process of this ceasefire negotiations on a final solution to the conflict begin – Russia agrees to this, and it is proposing this to the US and through the US to Ukraine.
It is very important how the conditions are formulated, the purpose of the ceasefire and the guarantees that this ceasefire will not lead to the military situation getting worse for Russia. All this is in the hands of the Russian leadership.
"We are not talking about tomorrow posting an announcement that from such and such hour such and such conditions, but that Russia together with the United States will determine the terms of the ceasefire. And in this determination, the Russian leadership must take into account all the dangers - and how to neutralize them in the process of the ceasefire, and so that the ceasefire achieves the goal that Russia sees," Kedmi said.
"The ceasefire is the first stage of negotiations, not in itself. So everything is in the hands of Russia, it can determine all this and make sure that it is implemented differently than it was when the Minsk agreements were concluded.
…And if we are talking only about a respite to gather strength, then Russia has enough opportunities and resources to prevent this from happening,” the expert added.
Russia has every opportunity to prevent the ceasefire from turning into a "Minsk" agreement – Kedmi