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Russia Demands Ukraine Drop Western Ties or Risk Losing More Land
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![Photo of Vlad Litnarovych]( "Photo of Vlad Litnarovych")
Ukraine must accept Russia’s terms and give up its aspirations for Western integration in order to end the war, Russian presidential aide and head of the Kremlin’s negotiation team Vladimir Medinsky said in an interview with The Wall Street Journal on June 11.
According to Medinsky, Kyiv remains unwilling to compromise, and that stance could lead to further territorial losses.
“We want peace. But if Ukraine continues to act based on the national interests of other countries, we will simply be forced to respond,” Medinsky emphasized.
He warned that it is impossible to fight a long war against Russia and pointed to the Great Northern War—an 18th-century conflict between Russia and Sweden—as a historical example of Moscow’s endurance. However, Medinsky omitted the fact that Tsar Peter I had powerful allies, including Denmark-Norway, Prussia, Saxony, the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and the Netherlands—unlike Putin’s more isolated war against Ukraine, launched on February 24, 2022.
Medinsky also claimed the West misunderstands the war by framing it as a geopolitical conflict akin to those between Britain and France—nations with distinct histories and cultures. Instead, he described Russia’s war in Ukraine as a “fratricidal struggle” between two peoples who share a common language and culture and are “destined to be close allies.”
“It’s like a quarrel between two brothers—an older and a younger one—about who is smarter and more important,” he said. “Unfortunately, this conflict deepens our differences, which is why we want it to end as soon as possible.”
The interview followed a second round of direct negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv held in Istanbul on June 2, which ended with no significant breakthrough—apart from agreements on prisoner and body exchanges.
Ukrainian officials argue that Russia’s repeated insistence on “brotherly ties” and demands for Ukrainian capitulation are what undermine any serious peace efforts.
Notably, the resumed peace talks, which come after a three-year hiatus, have coincided with a new Russian offensive. The Russian military has ramped up attacks in the Donetsk, Sumy, and Kharkiv regions, and launched widespread strikes on Ukrainian cities.
Earlier, Medinsky reported that Russian citizens are calling for immediate missile strikes on Kyiv and Lviv using the “Oreshnik” missile system in retaliation for what they view as terrorist attacks on Russian soil.
“Indeed, our population, our citizens demand much harsher actions from us. Of course, after this, citizens demand: we need to strike Kyiv and Lviv with Oreshnik, enough negotiations,” he stated.
