Moscow and Kyiv are discussing a ceasefire as part of a possible deal that would see Ukraine abandon its bid to join NATO in exchange for security guarantees and the prospect of joining the EU, people said on condition of anonymity because the issue is not yet finalized. The draft ceasefire document does not contain any discussion of three of Russia’s initial demands – “demilitarization”, “demilitarization” and legal protection of the Russian language in Ukraine, the people added. Envoys from both sides are set to meet in Istanbul on Tuesday for a fourth round of peace talks aimed at ending President Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The concessions from Russia come as its month-long ground offensive has largely stalled as a result of tougher-than-expected Ukrainian resistance and Russian operational shortcomings. But Ukraine and its Western backers remain skeptical of Putin’s intentions, worrying that the Russian president could use the talks as a smokescreen to replenish his depleted forces and plan a new offensive. David Arahamia, leader of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s party in parliament and a member of the Kiev negotiating team, told the FT that the parties were close to an agreement on security guarantees and Ukraine’s accession to the EU, but called for caution. prospects for significant progress. “All issues are ‘on the table from the beginning’ of the negotiations, but ‘many points – as in any individual issue there are unresolved points,’” Arahamia said. Another source close to the talks said that Ukraine was concerned that Russia was changing its position almost day by day, both in terms of military pressure and demands such as the “demilitarization” of Kiev. Russia “cannot and will not talk about progress” because “it could only damage the negotiation process,” Putin’s spokesman Dmitry Peshkov told Interfax on Monday. “At the moment, unfortunately, we can not talk about significant achievements and accomplishments,” he added.

As part of the agreement in question, Ukraine will also refrain from developing nuclear weapons or hosting foreign military bases in addition to abandoning its NATO bid. In return, Ukraine would take what Arahamia called a “wording close to NATO Article 5” – in which alliance members must help each other in the event of an attack – for security guarantees from countries such as Russia. the USA, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Germany, China, Italy, Poland, Israel and Turkey. Any future agreement, however, will have to be agreed with the guarantors and ratified by their parliaments, Zelenski said on Sunday. The guarantor candidates have not yet agreed to support Ukraine’s security, the people said. “We have no rejections so far,” Arahamia said. Ukraine would put the agreement to a referendum several months before changing its constitution, Zelensky said – a process that could take at least a year. “The only solution [issue] is the kind of international guarantees that Ukraine is looking for, but. . . “We still have to get approval from the guarantors, otherwise the deal will never fly,” Arahamia said.

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Are you from Ukraine? Do you have friends and family in or from Ukraine whose lives have been disrupted? Or maybe you’re doing something to help these people, such as raising funds or housing people in your homes. We want to hear from you. Tell us through a short survey. The draft announcement under consideration leaves the biggest sticking point – Ukraine’s efforts to reclaim territory occupied by Russia since 2014 – to be settled in a tentative future discussion between Putin and Zelensky, the people said. Moscow, Arahamia said, was demanding that Ukraine recognize Russian control of the Crimean peninsula, which Moscow annexed in 2014, as well as two Russian-backed separatist territories in the eastern Donbas region. “We will never recognize any kind of border except as it is in our Declaration of Independence,” Arahamia said. “This is the most critical point.” For now, Ukraine was ready to discuss a number of humanitarian issues, such as restoring water supplies to Crimea and pledging never to try to retake the peninsula by force, the people said. If there is a ceasefire, the foreign ministers of Ukraine and Russia will then meet to draft separate documents on finalizing security guarantees and further agreements on social issues such as the protection of the Russian language in Ukraine. Efforts will then follow to arrange a meeting between Putin and Zelensky, although Peshkov said on Monday that there was “no move” to hold such a meeting.