Ukrainian President Volodymyr ZelenskyKYIV, Feb. 20Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's statement on the Budapest Memorandum does not mean that Kiev will return to the development of nuclear weapons, but it may be an opportunity to withdraw from the Minsk agreements to resolve the conflict in Donbass, Andriy Zolotarev, head of the Ukrainian analytical center Third Sector, said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky , speaking on Saturday at the Munich Conference, said that he would initiate negotiations of the participants in the Budapest Memorandum on ensuring security. The Minister of Foreign Affairs was entrusted to convene them. According to the Ukrainian President, if they do not take place or there are no security guarantees for Kiev as a result, «Ukraine will have every right to believe that the Budapest Memorandum does not work, and all package decisions of 1994 will be called into question.»
The expert called the talk about the creation of nuclear weapons in Ukraine a bluff «It is clear that Ukraine is unlikely to return to nuclear weapons, their development. There are no material and technical resources for this, neither financial nor scientific. But (security guarantees — ed.) This is a question not only Ukraine, because what can nuclear states talk about with the same Iran, North Korea, if they show what these guarantees are worth using the example of Ukraine,» Zolotarev said in a commentary to RIA Novosti on Sunday. In his opinion, Zelensky “spoiled the mood” to representatives of Western countries.” For the first time, the President of Ukraine made a rather strong and, I would say, format speech (at the Munich Security Conference — ed.). is trying to bring the collective West, partners of Ukraine, to the certainty that there is Ukraine — a partner or an instrument.At least, until now, with the collective West, none of the Ukrainian presidents has publicly I didn’t say anything,” said Zolotarev.Zakharova: Zelensky does not understand that the West does not need a strong Ukraine how to get away from the Minsk agreements (on the settlement of the situation in Donbass — ed.), jump out of this trap of the Minsk agreements, which was left by (ex-president) Petro Poroshenko, because Kiev cannot and does not want to fulfill the Minsk agreements, since this will put an end to that the form of statehood that was formed after the Maidan (in 2014 — ed.). And the current government has no desire to commit political suicide, «Zolotarev believes. The Western countries that provide diplomatic and military support to Kiev during the last series of meetings and negotiations repeatedly urged Kiev to comply with the Minsk agreements. In particular, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that all parties must adhere to them. According to Scholz, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky promised to submit draft laws on the special status of Donbass, constitutional reform and suffrage for discussion in the contact group.Posted by: Ekaterina Zaitseva
