Russian President Vladimir Putin called on Ukraine to withdraw from four eastern regions partially occupied by his forces as a condition of peace talks, a demand Kyiv dismissed as ¡°manipulative¡± on the eve of a conference on the war to which Moscow hasn¡¯t been invited.
Putin said Ukrainian forces should pull out from the Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions of the country in return for a cease-fire by Russian troops. He also said Ukraine must give up its bid to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, in a televised speech before Foreign Ministry officials on Friday.
Putin is seeking to ¡°mislead the international community, undermine diplomatic efforts aimed at achieving a just peace and to split the unity of the majority of the world community,¡± Ukraine¡¯s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. The proposals set out a day before the Kyiv-backed conference show ¡°Russia is afraid of genuine peace,¡± it said.
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