RT.com
04 Apr 2022, 00:13 GMT+10
German Chancellor had reportedly attempted to convince the Ukrainian leader to drop NATO membership plan
German chancellor Olaf Scholz had offered Volodymyr Zelensky a chance for peace just days before the launch of the Russian military offensive, but the Ukrainian president turned it down, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) has reported.
Scholz had made what the US outlet described as "one last push for a settlement between Moscow and Kiev" less than a week before the Russian forces were sent into Ukraine on February 24.
The chancellor told Zelensky in Munich on February 19 "that Ukraine should renounce its NATO aspirations and declare neutrality as part of a wider European security deal between the West and Russia," the paper writes. The daily also claims that "the pact would be signed by Mr. Putin and Mr. Biden, who would jointly guarantee Ukraine's security."
However, Zelensky rejected the offer to make the concession and avoid confrontation, saying that "[Russia's President Vladimir] Putin couldn't be trusted to uphold such an agreement and that most Ukrainians wanted to join NATO," the WSJ reports, without revealing its sources for the information.
"His answer left German officials worried that the chances of peace were fading," the report points out.
Scholz and Zelensky did meet on that day on the sidelines of the Munich Security Conference, at which each delivered an address.
Russia attacked its neighbor in late February, following Ukraine's failure to implement the terms of the Minsk agreements signed in 2014, and Russia's eventual recognition of the Donbass republics in Donetsk and Lugansk. The German and French brokered protocols had been designed to regularize the status of those regions within the Ukrainian state.
Russia has now demanded that Ukraine officially declare itself a neutral country that will never join the US-led NATO military bloc. Kiev insists the Russian offensive was completely unprovoked and has denied claims it was planning to retake the rebel regions by force.
(RT.com)
Get a daily dose of Malaysia Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Malaysia Sun.
More InformationBEIJING, China - China and Nepal signed several agreements on Monday. The agreements were signed during a bilateral meeting between ...
DHAKA, Bangladesh - According to new research that ranks political violence worldwide, Bangladesh ranks 22nd out of the world's 50 ...
RAWALPINDI, Pakistan - Army Chief General Asim Munir met with members of Pakistan's Christian community on Monday, emphasizing the importance ...
DHAKA, Bangladesh - The BNP has given the government an ultimatum to release BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia, who is being ...
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan - Caretaker Foreign Minister Jalil Abbas Jilani stated on Saturday that Pakistan's decision to establish relations with Israel ...
MANDALAY, Myanmar - According to local sources, Junta soldiers kidnapped over 60 civilians from a village in Mandalay Region's Myingyan ...
DETROIT, Michigan: This week, the United Auto Workers (UAW) expanded its members' strike to include dealers selling and servicing General ...
TOKYO, Japan: Toyota Motor (7203.T) is ramping up its production of electric vehicles (EVs) under both the Toyota and luxury ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: After consumer complaints of oil pump failures, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) Office of Defects Investigation ...
NEW YORK, New York - With no major news Monday, and nothing on the horizon, U.S. stocks remained little moved, ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: In a small but rare reduction to its headcount, which has grown steadily since 2010, the US Federal ...
CAMP HILL, Pennsylvania: This week, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that Rite Aid could shut down some 400 to ...