Original title: Ukrainian Officials Say Russia Proposed 38-Year Parallel Truce Between North and South Korea, and Kremlin Responds
(Observer Network News) Oleksiy Danilov, secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, said on Jan. 8 that Russia could propose to Ukraine a truce plan similar to the “38th parallel” between Korea of North and South Korea. He said the proposal was made during talks with former European officials by Deputy Chief of Staff of the Russian presidential administration Dmitry Kozak.
The Kremlin replied on the 9th that the Russian president’s deputy chief of staff Kozak had never held talks with Europe on the Ukrainian question, which was a “hoax”.
Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine Danilov screenshot of the report by the Ukrainian News Agency
According to reports from the Ukrainian news agency and RIA Novosti, the secretary of the Ukrainian Commission for National Security and National Defense Danilov said on the 8th in an interview with the Ukrainian media that he was very sure that one of the options Russia could offer Russia -Negotiations with Ukraine were “North Korea scheme”, which would mean the division of Ukraine.
“Currently we are offered North Korea’s plan, which is to draw the so-called ’38th parallel’: there are such Ukrainians here, there are such Ukrainians,” Danilov added, “Russians can now do anything what. Invention, I’m definitely one of the options they can offer us is the ’38 wire'”.
According to him, when Russian Deputy Chief of Staff Kozak met with former European politicians, he conveyed through them the message that Russia is ready to make concessions to resolve the current status quo and impose a truce in Ukraine.
Danilov also said that in recent talks, the South Korean side had argued that it was wrong to divide the Korean peninsula with the 38th parallel north in the 1950s, and that it was the concessions made at the time that led to the current problem.
In this regard, the Russian Kremlin spokesman Peskov replied on the 9th that the news that the deputy director of the Russian president’s office Kozak held talks with the Europeans on the Ukrainian issue was another “hoax”.
“This is another scam.” Peskov said deputy director of the Russian president’s office Kozak had not attended the talks. The “Kozak” in Danilov’s mouth could refer to other people, perhaps from Ukraine’s Taras Kozak of Parliament.
RIA Novosti: Peskov responded
“Russia Today” (RT) added that Taras Kozak was a member of the Ukrainian opposition party “For Life” and was elected to the National Assembly in 2019. “For Life” was repeatedly criticized by the president Zelensky for alleged pro-Russian leanings. In 2021, Kozak and party leader Medvedchuk were sanctioned by the Ukrainian government and convicted of treason. Kozak insists he is politically persecuted and is currently on the run abroad.
So far, Russia and Ukraine have held several rounds of negotiations and started communicating via video conferences in March last year. But since then, peace talks between Russia and Ukraine have stalled due to mutual accusations: Russia has accused Ukraine of rejecting peace talks; Ukraine has opposed Russia’s allegations and accused Russia of halting negotiations in April after committing “war crimes”.
On Oct. 4 last year, Zelensky approved the National Security Council’s decision that it was impossible to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and then changed his words in November to say that “real peace talks” can be held. , but only if Russia “return of occupied land”, “compensation for war losses” and “war crimes liability”. In this regard, the Russian side replied that the Ukrainian side set preconditions and lacked “good will” for the peace talks.
According to Interfax reports, the chairman of the parliamentary group of the Ukrainian People’s Servant Party Alahamiya said in November last year that Ukraine could resume peace talks with Russia in the second half of 2023.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly said he will not turn down peace talks. In December last year, Putin stressed that, unlike Ukraine, Russia does not refuse to negotiate on the situation around Ukraine and is ready to negotiate with all interested parties.
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