Moscow, Beijing show consolidated positions, but too early to draw conclusions — military expert Selezniov

He shared his opinions with Espreso TV.

“The peace summit to be held in Switzerland will be held according to President Zelenskyy's peace formula, there are somewhat different positions, and if the Chinese side is represented at this summit, it will most likely promote its own Chinese truce plan, and it is about fixing the status quo, that is, fixing the territories that are currently occupied by the Russian army for Russia. Is Ukrainian society ready to accept this option? The answer is obvious,” the military expert said.

According to Selezniov, the national legislation stipulates that the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has no right to hold any negotiations with the Russian leader until the last Russian soldier leaves the territory of Ukraine within its 1991 borderline.

“There is a certain crisis of ultimatums, but it is difficult to predict how compromises will be found. I think it will be worth talking about this in more detail after the Swiss summit, but for now, of course, we see the consolidated positions of the Moscow government and the Beijing government. It is clear that they are actually acting on the same block now, and although China is clearly not providing military supplies for the Russian army, it is contributing to the functioning of the Russian economy and supporting them, including in the field of those techniques and technologies that can have dual use. The challenge is considerable, because in Russia, the Chinese economy is one of the largest in the world, and it is difficult to predict how the countries of the collective West will be able to respond to this,” the former spokesman for the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine summarized.

The Ukrainian Armed Forces colonel added that both Ukrainian and Russian armies are tired, “The fatigue is evident in the fact that the Russian-Ukrainian war has been going on for over 10 years, 2 of them are full-scale war, and the enemy still has the resources to take the initiative on the battlefield.”

• In February, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Russia was allegedly ready for a political and diplomatic end to the war in Ukraine, but “taking into account the realities on the ground.”
• In March, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Galuzin and Li Hui said at a meeting that a settlement of the war in Ukraine is impossible without taking into account Russian interests.
• And in April, ISW explained why the Kremlin had intensified its statements about negotiations.
• On May 15, Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin said that Russia was “open to dialogue on Ukraine,” but that the interests of both sides should be taken into account. Ukraine considers it “bargaining.”