Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused Ukraine of signing a peace treaty with Russia to end the ongoing war and throwing it into the ‘garbage of history’ shortly after that. Putin’s comments came during a meeting with the leaders of African Union spearheaded by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at St. Petersberg’s historic Konstantinovsky Palace on Saturday, June 17.
The meeting included leaders from South Africa, Senegal, Egypt, Zambia, Uganda, Congo Republic, and the Comoro Islands. These leaders had previously visited the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, before their meeting with President Putin.
Africa’s pitch for peace between Russia and Ukraine: What did Putin say?
Putin said that in the spring of 2022 — when the war between Russia and Ukraine was in its initial phase — a peace treaty was signed by the leader of negotiation group from the Ukrainian side and his Russian counterpart in Istanbul.
Turkey hosted a series of negotiations starting in the spring of 2022 to help develop “trust” between the two warring sides.
Also watch | Turkey pushes for Russia- Ukraine peace talks
“It was called Treaty of permanent neutrality and security guarantees of Ukraine,” Putin said, after flapping the supposed draft of the treaty in air, stating: “We never agreed with the Ukrainian side that the text will be confidential but we never showed it before nor commented on it,” Putin said.
“This draft of the treaty was initialed by the leader of the negotiation group from Kyiv. He put his signature. There it exists,” he added while showing the supposed draft of the treaty.
The Ukrainian side has not reacted on Putin’s comments.
The peace agreement was purportedly based on the condition that Moscow withdraws its troops from Kyiv. Alongside, it specified the number of troops to be stationed in other parts of Ukraine.
🇷🇺‼️Putin: “Peace was signed between Ukraine and Russia in the spring of 2022.”‼️
#Putin publicly showed the previously unpublished document in front of South African President Ramaphosa.
(Nato reportedly sent disgraced US puppet Boris Johnson to force Kiev to back down.) pic.twitter.com/DQ4stmvAD3
— Djole 🇷🇸 (@onlydjole) June 17, 2023
The peace agreement was immediately discarded by Ukraine as soon as Russia obliged the request and withdrew troops from Kyiv, Putin accused.
“Where are the guarantees that they will not renounce any other agreements in the future?,” he asked.
The peace mission undertaken by African leaders holds significant importance for Africa, as the region heavily relies on food and fertilizer deliveries from both Russia and Ukraine.
The war has caused disruptions to exports from one of the world’s key sources of agricultural produce, affecting food security and supply chains.
