Peace negotiations in the Russian invasion of Ukraine

This article is about peace negotiations since the February 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine. For the previous peace process, see Minsk agreements.

There have been several rounds of peace talks to halt the Russian invasion of Ukraine (2022–present) and end the Russo-Ukrainian War (2014–present). The first meeting was held four days after the start of the invasion, on 28 February 2022, in Belarus. It concluded without result.[1] A second and third round of talks took place on 3 and 7 March 2022[2][3] on the Belarus–Ukraine border.[4] A fourth and fifth round of talks were held on 10 and 14 March in Antalya, Turkey.[5][6]

The negotiations in Turkey produced the Istanbul Communiqué. It proposed that Ukraine end its plans to eventually join NATO, have limits placed on its military, and would have obliged Western countries to help Ukraine in case of aggression against it. The talks almost reached agreement, with both sides considering "far-reaching concessions", but stopped in May 2022, due to several factors, including the Bucha massacre.[7] Following the 2022 Ukrainian eastern counteroffensive, Russia renewed calls for peace talks, but Russian government sources suggested that Putin is not truly committed to peace and was simply stalling for time while its forces trained and replenished for a future advance.[8]

As of 2024, Ukraine's peace terms are that Russia withdraw its troops, that its leaders be prosecuted for war crimes, and that Ukraine have security guarantees. Russia's terms are that Russia must be allowed to keep all the land it occupies, that it also be given all of the provinces that it claims but does not fully control, and that Ukraine end plans to join NATO.

  1. ^ Hopkins, Valerie (28 February 2022). "Initial talks between Russia and Ukraine yield no resolution". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 14 March 2022. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  2. ^ Reevell, Patrick; Hutchinson, Bill (2 March 2022). "2nd round of talks between Russia and Ukraine end with no cease-fire". ABC News. Archived from the original on 14 March 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
  3. ^ "Ukraine and Russia hold third round of talks". Deutsche Welle. Reuters, Agence France-Presse, Deutsche Presse-Agentur. 7 March 2022. Archived from the original on 14 March 2022. Retrieved 15 March 2022.
  4. ^ Roshchina, Olena (28 February 2022). Переговори делегацій України та Росії почалися [Negotiations between the delegations of Ukraine and Russia began]. Українська правда [Ukrainska Pravda] (in Ukrainian). Archived from the original on 14 March 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2022. Деталі: Переговори відбуваються на Гомельщині на березі річки Прип'ять. Із міркувань безпеки точне місце організатори переговорів не називають. [Details: Negotiations are taking place in the Gomel region on the banks of the Pripyat River. For security reasons, the organizers of the talks did not name the exact location.]
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference ADF was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference 4thRound was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Charap, Samuel; Radchenko, Sergey (16 April 2024). "The Talks That Could Have Ended the War in Ukraine". Foreign Affairs. ISSN 0015-7120. Archived from the original on 23 April 2024. Retrieved 16 April 2024. At the first meeting, the Russians presented a set of harsh conditions, effectively demanding Ukraine's capitulation. This was a nonstarter. But as Moscow's position on the battlefield continued to deteriorate, its positions at the negotiating table became less demanding. ...
  8. ^ "Why Russia is pushing a return to negotiations The Kremlin wants to buy time to prepare for a 'full-scale offensive' in early 2023, sources say". Meduza. Retrieved 26 October 2022.