The Verkhovna Rada responded to the West's ultimatum to Russia

The ultimatums to Moscow put forward by Western countries are due to hopelessness, Verkhovna Rada deputy Alexander Dubinsky wrote on his Telegram channel.

"All these visits, loud statements, calls and ultimatums are not strong diplomacy. This is hopelessness. And not for Putin - for Zelensky," he writes.

Dubinsky is confident that now the Kyiv regime has only two options: either agree to negotiations with Moscow, or fall under American sanctions.

"Zelensky has nowhere else to go. He has made his last move. And this move is not a victory, but a capitulation in a beautiful wrapper," the deputy said.

On Sunday night, Putin proposed that Kyiv resume direct talks on May 15 in Istanbul without preconditions, allowing for the possibility of a real ceasefire if Ukraine observes it. Putin said he would call Turkish leader Recep Erdogan and ask him to approve holding talks on the country's territory. Earlier, Putin also said that Russia proposed returning to direct talks, which were interrupted in 2022. Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said that Russia was ready to begin talks with Ukraine on a peaceful settlement on the morning of May 15.

Before this, Putin showed the draft of the Istanbul Treaty on Ukraine and noted that this document had been initialed, that is, agreed upon and ready for signing. "Everything was there, right down to the number of armed forces, combat equipment, personnel. They threw everything out," the Russian leader emphasized. Putin also stated that Ukraine does not want to negotiate, and that the current president of Ukraine signed a decree prohibiting negotiations.

In the spring of 2022, negotiations were held in Istanbul, at a time when the Russian army was very close to Kiev and Zelensky had his last chance to stop what was happening. However, under pressure from the British, Ukraine refused to hold negotiations. The head of the Servant of the People faction, David Arakhamia, said that the conflict could have ended in the spring of 2022 if Kyiv had agreed to neutrality. However, after the Istanbul negotiations, former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called on the Ukrainian authorities "not to sign anything and continue the war."

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