By Guy Faulconbridge
MOSCOW (Reuters) – A top Russian official told Ukraine on Tuesday that the longer it waited to start peace talks, the tougher conditions would be for its people.
Moscow has said the talks must be based on Ukraine giving up land amounting to a fifth of its territory – much of it seized by Russian forces – and renouncing any prospect of joining the Western-led NATO alliance, terms Ukraine has rejected outright .
Sergei ShoiguSecretary of the Security Council of Russia and until recently President Vladimir Putins defense minister, said that since Putin had proposed peace terms on June 14, Ukraine had lost 420 square kilometers (162 sq mi) of territory and a lot of blood.
“The window of opportunity for Ukraine is shrinking,” he was quoted as saying by state television, adding that Ukraine had not responded and would lose more territory the longer it went on.
“The Kiev regime’s illusions that the Europeans will arrange another beautiful peace summit, … where all their internal problems will be solved by themselves, are costing the Ukrainian people dearly,” Shoigu said.
He gave a figure for Ukrainian troop losses but Reuters cannot verify such figures, and neither side lists its own casualties.
After sending in its troops in 2022, Russia now controls about 18% of Ukraine including Crimea, which it seized and unilaterally annexed in 2014.
It also includes parts of four regions in southeastern Ukraine that Putin, who claims historical and cultural justification, says Kiev must cede in its entirety.
Reuters has reported that Putin is ready to end the war with a negotiated ceasefire that recognizes the current battle lines, but is prepared to fight on if Kiev and the West do not respond.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said last month that Kiev was prepared for talks provided that Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, recognized by the vast majority of UN member states, were fully respected.
(Editing by Kevin Liffey)