Ukrainian Foreign Minister Sybiha outlines key conditions for peace talks with Russia

Ukraine will not recognize the loss of any territories, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha declared in an interview with RBC Ukraine, while discussing red lines in negotiations with Russia.

He also emphasized that no one can forbid Ukraine from participating in any alliances, whether NATO or the European Union. The third red line for Kyiv is restrictions on the size of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

“The third point — there cannot be any restrictions on Ukraine’s defence capabilities, no restrictions on the strength of our army, or our capabilities,” he stated.

According to the Ukrainian foreign minister, achieving a ceasefire in Ukraine is a very complex process, as the question arises of how to control and ensure compliance with it.

Sybiha stressed that this would be a temporary ceasefire. “This is definitely not a frozen conflict, but a temporary ceasefire for 30 days, as stated in our joint declaration with the American delegation,” he pointed out.

He further explained that Ukraine’s experience with the "Minsk process" shows that this is indeed a challenge and that provocations from Russia should be expected.

“Our experience shows that the Russians do not adhere to their agreements, and their practice is to immediately violate these ceasefires. Therefore, we really need an effective mechanism for objective control. It definitely should have an international component. The question is who could carry out such monitoring, because, of course, there is a national component — it cannot be without us, because this is happening on our territory. So Ukraine is key when it comes to control and monitoring the ceasefire,” Sybiha emphasized.

The minister added that Ukraine has already begun forming a national team to develop the modalities and algorithms for ensuring this process.

“We should also consider our technical capabilities, which we have significantly increased over the past few years, particularly our ability to use drone technology for this monitoring. But undoubtedly, an international component should be involved to ensure objectivity in documenting any violations or provocations from the Russian side,” the diplomat noted.

Sybiha also pointed out that such mechanisms typically operate under the auspices of the UN, OSCE, or other international organizations.

“However, given our negative experience from 2014 to 2022, we need to carefully discuss the possibility and feasibility of implementing such an international component as part of the monitoring of a temporary ceasefire. This is also a subject for discussion with our European colleagues and the American side, and we are currently holding these consultations. Personally, as a minister, I am also involved in this because we need both expertise and collective diplomatic wisdom,” Sybiha concluded.

By Tamilla Hasanova