The Kremlin says Zelensky’s “No Minsk 3” comment confirms Kyiv’s unwillingness to negotiate

LONDON (Reuters) – Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Tuesday that Volodymyr Zelensky’s statement that there will be no “Minsk 3” agreement to end fighting in Ukraine confirms that Kyiv is not interested in peace talks with Moscow, RIA Novosti news agency reported. mentioned.

Speaking via video link to the G20 summit in Bali, the Ukrainian president on Tuesday ruled out a third “Minsk agreement”, referring to two failed ceasefire agreements between Kyiv and Moscow over the status of the eastern Donbass region.

“We will not allow Russia to wait, mobilize its forces, and then start a new series of terrorism and global destabilization. There will be no Minsk 3, which Russia will violate immediately after the agreement,” Zelensky said.

Asked on Tuesday if the statement confirms that Kyiv is not ready to negotiate with Russia, Peskov told the state-run RIA Novosti news agency: “Absolutely.”

Peace talks between the two sides have been lackluster in recent months, after early attempts to broker a cease-fire in Istanbul collapsed during the first weeks of the war.

Germany and France brokered the first of the Minsk agreements – signed in 2014 and 2015 – for a ceasefire in eastern Ukraine amid a war between Russian-backed separatists and Kiev. Both sides accused each other of violating the agreement.

(Reporting by Reuters; Editing by Jay Faulconbridge)