Ukrainian and Russian national flags are placed on the table ahead of the peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in a guest house in the Gomel region, Belarus, February 28, 2022. /VCG
Ukrainian and Russian national flags are placed on the table ahead of the peace talks between Russian and Ukrainian delegations in a guest house in the Gomel region, Belarus, February 28, 2022. /VCG
Russia will insist on concrete security guarantees from the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) as part of any agreement on Ukraine, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said on Sunday.
Ukraine's neutral status and NATO's rejection of its membership must be central to these guarantees, said Grushko in an interview with local media.
Since 2019, the number of military contingents on NATO's eastern flank has doubled, posing a significant threat to Russia, he said, adding that the ongoing rearmament of European countries adds to Moscow's security concerns.
Russia has also dismissed the possible deployment of NATO peacekeepers in Ukraine, instead proposing unarmed observers or a civilian monitoring group to oversee a potential peace deal.
Discussions on peacekeeping efforts in Ukraine remain premature and should only take place after a formal peace agreement has been reached, said Grushko, emphasizing that NATO's involvement in peacekeeping operations is fundamentally contradictory.
"NATO and peacekeeping are entirely incompatible. The real history of the alliance consists of military operations and unprovoked aggression to assert its global and regional dominance," he stated.
He reaffirmed Russia's stance that the deployment of NATO forces in Ukraine – whether under the banner of the EU, NATO, or individual national forces – would effectively place them in the conflict zone, making them direct participants with all the consequences that entail.
However, Moscow remains open to separate negotiations with the European Union if Brussels signals a willingness to engage.
**Trump to speak with Putin**
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday evening he plans to talk with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday regarding a potential resolution to the Ukraine conflict, according to U.S. media reports.
Trump, who is working to finalize a 30-day ceasefire agreement, said that land and power plants will be part of his conversation with the Russian leader.
"We will be talking about land. We will be talking about power plants," Trump told reporters. "I think we have a lot of it already discussed very much by both sides, Ukraine and Russia."
"We want to see if we can bring that war to an end. Maybe we can, maybe we can't, but I think we have a very good chance," he said.
**Zelenskyy rejects territorial concessions to Russia as ceasefire condition**
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday ruled out any territorial concessions to Russia as a potential step towards a ceasefire, the UNIAN news agency reported.
"Our position is that we do not recognize the occupied Ukrainian territories as Russian under any circumstances," Zelenskyy told reporters.
He confirmed that potential territorial concessions were discussed during [a March 11 meeting](https://news.cgtn.com/news/2025-03-12/Ukraine-agrees-to-30-day-ceasefire-during-talks-with-U-S-in-S-Arabia-1BFP1Uhm8Mw/p.html) between Ukrainian and U.S. delegations in Saudi Arabia.
Zelenskyy noted that Washington took into account Kiev's stance on the issue.
He stressed that the territorial issues are "complex" and should be addressed later at the negotiating table.
(With input from Xinhua)