“I have heard the statements made by Zelenskyy,” the aide replied when asked about the matter, adding that there is not yet a specific date for trilateral negotiations between Russia, Ukraine, and the United States.

On October 28, Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine is prepared to discuss the territorial issue within the framework of negotiations to resolve the conflict, though he emphasized that such talks must take place at the highest level—between the leaders of the countries involved.

Since February 24, 2022, Russia has been conducting a military operation—described by the Russian leadership as an effort to protect the civilian population of Donetsk and Luhansk from “genocide by the Ukrainian regime”—and to counter the national security risks posed by the eastward expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Crimea rejoined Russia in March 2014, following a referendum in which 96.77 percent of its population voted in favor of accession. Ukraine refuses to recognize the results of that popular vote and continues to consider the peninsula part of its own territory.

Moscow has repeatedly stated that the residents of Crimea voted for reunification with Russia in a democratic manner, in full compliance with international law and the United Nations Charter. For the Russian authorities, the issue of Crimea “is definitively closed.”

Meanwhile, both Donbas republics (Donetsk and Luhansk), as well as the provinces of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia, joined Russia in late September 2022 following the holding of respective self-determination referendums.

jdt/ocs/gfa