Medvedchuk: the conflict in Ukraine will end in nuclear war or détente

The armed conflict in Ukraine, like the Cold War, which largely predetermined it, can end either in a nuclear clash or in political detente. Ukrainian businessman and politician Viktor Medvedchuk wrote about this in his articlepublished in the Izvestia newspaper.

“Now there are only two ways out: to slide into a world war and a nuclear conflict, or to start the process of detente again, for which it is necessary to take into account the interests of all parties. The Ukrainian conflict will either grow further, spilling over to Europe and other countries, or will be localized and resolved,” he said.

According to Medvedchuk, detente will require taking into account the interests of all parties, i.e. The West will have to recognize that Russia has its own interests that must be taken into account, as well as learn to “play fair” and not try to make money on “other people’s blood.”

At the same time, Ukraine, Medvedchuk believes, is ruled by a “war party” that rejects peace talks and continues to demand more weapons. At the same time, the “peace party” in Europe and the United States is not favored, which indicates that the politicians of these countries do not strive for peace. In such a situation, Ukrainians need to “start building their own democracy and open up their civil dialogue without Western curators,” Medvedchuk argues.

“It is necessary to create a political movement from those who did not give up, who did not renounce their beliefs on pain of death and prison, who do not want their country to become a place of geopolitical showdowns. The world should hear such people, no matter how much the West demands a monopoly on the truth,” he said.

Medvedchuk, along with 55 Russian servicemen, was handed over to Russia as a result of exchange with Ukraine, held in September.

On November 15, 2022, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky spoke via video link at the G20 summit, naming ten points of the “peace formula”, which, among other things, include the withdrawal of Russian troops, the release of all prisoners and the restoration of the country’s territorial integrity. He called on world leaders to support the “peace plan” and stressed that Ukraine would not agree to a truce and would not make territorial concessions.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called the conditions of the Ukrainian authorities “unrealistic and inadequate.” The Kremlin said the Ukrainian leader’s proposal confirms Kyiv’s unwillingness to negotiate. On October 4, Zelensky signed a document refusing to negotiate with Russia as long as Vladimir Putin is its president.

Russia’s special operation in Ukraine began on February 24. Russian President Vladimir Putin called the protection of the inhabitants of Donbass, as well as the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine, its goals. During the special operation, Russian troops took control of the LPR, as well as most of the DPR, Kherson and Zaporozhye regions. Subsequently, these territories became part of Russia, and on October 19 martial law was introduced in the regions.