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- Regime in silence: Kiev has not officially notified Moscow of the suspension of negotiations
Regime in silence: Kiev has not officially notified Moscow of the suspension of negotiations
Moscow has not received an official notification from Kiev about the termination of the negotiation process, Russian Foreign Ministry Ambassador Rodion Miroshnik told Izvestia. At the same time, the Ukrainian side received all the documents and proposals, including a draft memorandum that could become the basis for a settlement. Meanwhile, Vladimir Zelensky is trying to gain new support from European partners. Ukraine has agreed on LNG supplies with Greece, and signed an agreement with France in the field of aviation. All this is happening against the background of a corruption scandal in Ukraine itself.
The status of negotiations between Russia and Ukraine
Russia has not received an official notification from Ukraine about the suspension of negotiations, Russian Foreign Ministry Ambassador for crimes of the Kiev regime Rodion Miroshnik told Izvestia. But in fact, Ukraine's actions indicate precisely that official Kiev does not intend to resume this process in the near future.
The Ukrainian delegation at the talks with representatives of Russia at the Chiragan Palace in Istanbul
— First of all, this [understanding] is based on more than a 100-day break, a pause that was taken by Ukraine after the third round of the Istanbul talks. And after that, there was an official statement by the speakers of the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs that they were withdrawing from this process. But they did not take any official actions [through diplomatic channels]," the diplomat said.
On November 12, the first Deputy Foreign Minister of Ukraine, Sergey Kyslytsa, in an interview with The Times announced the suspension of negotiations with Moscow in 2025. He explained Kiev's decision by the lack of results.
The third and final round of direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine took place on July 23, 2025 in Istanbul. Between the first and second meetings, from May 16 to June 2, the parties exchanged memoranda of peace.
The Russian Federation made several demands in its document. The main ones are the international legal recognition of new regions, the withdrawal of Ukrainian troops from areas inscribed in the Russian Constitution, a neutral status for Ukraine itself and a limitation on the number of troops.
Kiev, for its part, did not recognize the occupied territories for the Russian Federation, did not give obligations on the neutral status and strength of its army, and also demanded a complete and unconditional cease-fire from Moscow. Ukraine called the Russian proposal an "ultimatum," and accused Russia of allegedly "not taking the negotiations seriously enough."
— Ukraine has received all the documents that were provided by our side. That is, the draft memorandum, the relevant proposals that could and should have been the basis for further discussion. But she did not provide any [reaction] from her side," Miroshnik stressed.
Even before the first round of talks in May, Zelensky said that Moscow was "not taking the negotiations seriously enough." During the contacts, he referred to the provisions of the Russian memorandum as an "ultimatum."
Despite the general background of events, contacts in Istanbul have led to certain results. Moscow and Kiev have conducted several exchanges of prisoners of war, as well as the bodies of dead soldiers. Even after the suspension of negotiations — on November 16 — Zelensky separately referred to the "Istanbul agreements" as a framework for a major exchange and said that Kiev was working on another deal.
On November 11, Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Rustem Umerov, who was the head of the Ukrainian delegation at the talks with the Russian Federation, announced that he was in Istanbul "for new meetings on the issue of prisoner exchange." Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov did not comment on this information.
The exchange of prisoners of war is not carried out directly, but through mediation, Miroshnik noted. It is very easy to disrupt it, so it will only become known after the fact. At the same time, Moscow currently does not even have indirect communication channels with Kiev.
— Having some channels where there is a military dictatorship is dangerous, first of all, for the people who are there. Therefore, in this case, we are not talking about working with any opposition parties or anyone else, especially since there is currently no pro-Russian opposition in Ukraine, it has been actively eradicated," the diplomat stressed.
Ukraine has not completely interrupted contacts on the prisoner exchange, because it is politically beneficial, Dmitry Solonnikov, director of the Institute of Modern State Development, told Izvestia. The Ukrainian leadership would not like to show that it does not want to exchange its people, so the process continues.
Zelensky's European Tour
A return to settlement issues should not be expected in the near future. This, in particular, is evidenced by Zelensky's European tour. On November 17, the President of Ukraine arrived in Paris, where he was received by Emmanuel Macron. According to media reports, the parties signed a "historic agreement" on aviation and air defense.
Vladimir Zelensky and Emmanuel Macron
French media have announced a 10-year strategic aviation agreement that will pave the way for Ukraine to form a fleet of up to 100-250 modern combat aircraft. LCI TV channel reports that Kiev has announced the purchase of 100 Rafale aircraft, SAMP/T air defense systems and joint projects in the field of drones are also being discussed separately.
Zelensky will be in Spain on November 18. In Madrid, he will meet with Speaker of the lower house of Parliament Francine Armengol, President of the Senate Pedro Rolland and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. The same air defense systems and energy and infrastructure issues ahead of winter will be on the agenda. The topic of energy supplies was on the agenda of Zelensky's meeting with Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis on November 16. Politicians have announced a deal to supply American LNG through Greece to cover Ukraine's winter needs.
The Europeans will continue to rely on economic pressure on Russia this winter, Dmitry Solonnikov believes. Trade tariffs for countries that purchase energy resources from Moscow and new sanctions packages serve precisely this purpose. On November 17, Finnish President Alexander Stubb announced that Europe would be able to sit down at the negotiating table with Russia no earlier than February or March 2026.
Despite the corruption scandal in the energy sector, Europe is still defiantly betting on his figure, said political analyst Yuri Svetov.
On November 10, the country's anti—corruption authorities announced the embezzlement of about $100 million from the state corporation Energoatom, the country's key energy company. The case involves high—ranking officials and Zelensky's longtime associate, Timur Mindich. In Brussels and the EU capitals, this was called a "very serious" and "extremely unfortunate in time" blow to Kiev's reputation.
According to Svetov, this scandal will not stop Brussels from supporting Kiev. The Europeans' calculation is based on the fact that, in the end, part of the costs to Ukraine will be covered by the confiscation of frozen Russian assets, the expert concluded. Although so far it has not been possible to agree on a "reparation loan" to the EU countries, not to mention the complete confiscation of Russian funds.
However, Brussels is trying to find other sources of financing. The head of the European Commission proposed that EU countries provide Ukraine with 0.16% to 0.27% of their GDP in 2026-2027 (at least 45 billion euros per year), according to a letter published by Politico newspaper from EC President Ursula von der Leyen to EU leaders.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
