At a forum in Beijing, the head of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation Sergei Shoigu announced that Russia wants to start negotiations on ending the war with Ukraine. To what extent this statement corresponds to the official attitude of the authorities and how Russia sees peace, read further in the article.
The Minister of Defense made this statement during a speech at the “Xiangshan” forum in China. This event is dedicated to the global construction of a single world community, and representatives of various states, even those in conflict or at war, can speak during it.
Blurted or was told?
One might think that the words about readiness for negotiations are only the Russian Defense Minister’s own opinion, but two eloquent facts testify against this:
1. The text for the speech was written on time. It was not prepared by Shoigu but by a team highlighting all the factors that official representatives of other countries should pay attention to. There are no random words in such speeches.
2. A few hours later, the speech was quoted by the press service of the Ministry of Defense. If somehow Shoigu conveyed an opinion that is not the official position of the Kremlin, it would not have been distributed and made available to the general public.
Therefore, in the statement of the Minister of Defense, one cannot see only his position.
“Not everything is so clear”
It would be possible to look for the positive in this if it were not for the subsequent text, which states that the condition of peace will be the fulfillment of specific requirements of Moscow.
Such conditions set for the world community include:
– prevention of a “strategic defeat” of Russia by the West;
– not returning the territorial integrity of Ukraine.
The representative of Russia called the occupation of the eastern and southern territories “new realities,” and there is no question of returning them to the control of Ukraine. That is, in essence, Russia proposes to leave everything as it is at the moment but, at the same time, stop Ukraine’s struggle for its lands.
Will the world listen?
In his speech, Shoigu hinted at several factors that could be attractive to the West:
– participation of the Russian Federation in the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine;
– “peaceful coexistence” with the West.
From this, it follows that firstly, Russia unofficially agrees to reparations and tries to warn the situation when it will be forced to do so because then the amount will be determined regardless of their wishes; secondly, the Kremlin understands the threat to the nuclear security of the world and is not ready for an increase in tensions in this field. This may mean that the authorities are moderately looking for a way out of the current situation or that Russia’s nuclear potential is exaggerated, and the Kremlin knows that it has no advantage.
Such promises are indeed quite attractive for the West, but the near future will show how events will develop.
