The Russian president suggests Ukraine be placed under ‘temporary administration’ of the United Nations as part of a peace deal.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has proposed that Ukraine could be placed under a “temporary administration” as part of a peace process that might involve assistance from North Korea and other allies of Moscow, according to Russian state media.
Speaking to a group of servicemen in Russia’s northern port city of Murmansk, Putin outlined several provisions for a peace process aimed at ending the three-year war initiated by Moscow in February 2022, as reported by Russia’s state news agency, TASS.
Among Putin’s suggestions was a call for new elections in Ukraine and the “signing of key agreements” once the country is under international administration, TASS stated.
“In principle, of course, a temporary administration could be introduced in Ukraine under the auspices of the UN, the United States, European countries, and our partners,” Putin was quoted as saying.
“This would be in order to hold democratic elections and bring to power a capable government enjoying the trust of the people, and then to start talks with them about a peace treaty,” Putin added.
“We are for resolving all these issues by peaceful means,” he said. “Yet, with removing the original causes that triggered the current situation,” he continued.
Putin also emphasized that other countries, beyond the US and Russia, should be involved in the peace process, including Moscow’s treaty ally, Pyongyang.
“This is not only the United States but also the People’s Republic of China, India, Brazil, South Africa, all BRICS countries,” Putin said.
“And many others, for example, including the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea,” he added, using North Korea’s official name.
According to South Korea’s military, Pyongyang has sent over 3,000 new troops to join Russian forces fighting in Ukraine, adding to the 11,000 dispatched last year. Casualties among these troops are reported to have been catastrophic in the fighting against Ukraine’s army.
Putin also expressed readiness to work with Europe, despite accusing it of “acting inconsistently, constantly trying to fool us.”
“But it’s OK, we have gotten used to it already. I hope we will make no mistakes based on excessive trust in our so-called partners,” he said, according to TASS.
He reserved praise for US President Donald Trump, whom he described as “sincerely wishing for the end of this conflict.”
Putin’s comments come amid separate negotiations in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this week between Russian, Ukrainian, and US officials aimed at securing a temporary ceasefire.
According to the US, Kyiv and Moscow agreed to halt military strikes on vessels in the Black Sea. However, in the days since, both sides have accused each other of not taking the peace talks seriously.
Following the agreement, Ukraine accused Russia of launching an overnight drone attack on the city of Mykolaiv, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described as a “clear signal to the whole world that Moscow is not going to pursue real peace.”
Russia, in turn, accused Ukraine of carrying out a drone attack on a gas storage facility and a power installation in Russian-held territory, violating an agreement to refrain from attacking each other’s power facilities.
Russian media reported that a second round of talks is scheduled to resume in Riyadh in mid-April.
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