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Ukraine Remains Open to Direct Talks with Russia but Warns “Patience is Not Limitless,” UN Envoy Says
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Ukraine is prepared for direct negotiations with Russia to achieve a lasting peace and continues to offer a ceasefire along the current front line as a significant compromise, Ukrinform reported on June 23.
Speaking at a UN Security Council meeting, Ukraine’s Permanent Representative to the UN, Andrii Melnyk, emphasized that the diplomatic offer remains on the table despite a shifting battlefield dynamic over the past month. He noted that the consequences of the war initiated by Russian leader Vladimir Putin are increasingly impacting Russian territory.
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“The boomerang of the war unleashed by Mr. Putin has returned to Russian territory, and for the first time, Russians are feeling the heavy breath of this war,” the envoy stated.
The diplomat highlighted recent military developments, pointing out that nearly 40 percent of Russian oil refineries have been damaged, diminishing their ability to support Moscow’s war machine. Furthermore, Melnyk stated that recent drone strikes have exposed the vulnerabilities of the Russian capital’s heavily fortified air defenses, Ukrinform reported.
“Recent days have shown that even the air defense shield built around Moscow and reinforced with systems deployed from all over Russia is unable to protect its military targets,” he said, adding that “this is only the beginning.”
Despite these developments, Melnyk reminded the Security Council that Ukraine has repeatedly urged the adoption of a resolution for a complete and unconditional ceasefire over the past 15 months. However, he warned that “our patience is not limitless” if the international body continues to adopt a “wait-and-see” approach, according to the news agency.
“I cannot rule out that Ukraine may recalibrate and change its proposal,” Melnyk cautioned, reiterating that a “ceasefire along the actual front line is already a major compromise.”
Addressing the Russian delegation directly, the Ukrainian representative demanded the immediate withdrawal of Russian forces from occupied Ukrainian territories to facilitate a just peace in accordance with the UN Charter. “You will never be able to hold the occupied lands. Never,” Melnyk concluded, as reported by Ukrinform. “So get out of Ukraine as soon as possible, before it is too late.”
Ukraine had previously tried initiating direct, face-to-face peace negotiations between Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the G7 summit in France.
The proposal, which envisioned talks mediated by G7 leaders, received no formal diplomatic response from the Kremlin; instead, Russian forces launched a coordinated shelling attack across Ukraine, an escalation that Kyiv officials characterized as Moscow’s real response to the meeting offer.
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