A possible meeting between the leaders of Russia, China and the US would encourage Vladimir Putin to continue the war against Ukraine. This was stated by Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sibiga in a post on the social network “Ex“.
According to him, the format between Ukraine, the US and Russia could accelerate the end of the war, while talks between Moscow, Washington and Beijing would lead to the opposite result.
“Inviting Putin to such a meeting would only fuel his megalomania and give him weight he does not deserve. He is not a world leader, but a war criminal. "And Russia is not a world power, but a world problem," Sibiga said.His statement came amid reports that American and Russian officials had discussed the possibility of a meeting between Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. According to the Associated Press, the talks were related to a possible meeting without Kiev's participation, which could take place around the APEC summit in China in November.
Criticism of the Russian position
Sibiga also pointed to economic arguments against granting special status to Moscow. According to him, the Russian economy is at least 13 times smaller than the American one and eight times smaller than the Chinese one. He said that the economy and living standards in Russia continue to shrink.
The Ukrainian minister also claims that Russia has lost 1.6 million people, killed and wounded, in the war, which he says Moscow cannot win and does not want to end. Szybiga added that Russian technology, industry and business are stagnant under the pressure of sanctions.
“By any pragmatic or moral criteria, Putin has no place at the same table with Presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping“, the minister wrote.So far, there is no confirmed date or final agreement for a meeting between the three leaders. Ukraine insists that any diplomatic format to end the war must include the Ukrainian side itself.
Sources: focus-news.net, apnews.com